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reallyexists · 6 months ago

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It turns out there's a fork of the Xenia emulator that can run Kameo: Elements of Power (2005) in a playable state, so I finally played one of the big fixations-from-afar of my childhood. Initially pitched for the N64, then moved to the GameCube, and finally coming out as a launch title for the Xbox 360 after Microsoft bought Rare, it bears the scars of a troubled development. It's a game pulled in many different directions. It sucks a little bit.

Obviously the big draw of the game to me as a kid was all the different weird guys in it, and as an adult that is... still the case! Here's a tier list! Details under the cut:

1: Pummelweed. This is one of the flagship guys. A horrible little venus flytrap-themed boxer who lets out adorable grunts and giggles as they do the single punch combo that they have. I just think they're neat! Deserving of the sole S-tier placement because they have an extremely good design, a fun (evil) personality & are fun to play as, despite being kind of one-note and dropping off in usefulness a bit as the game goes on.

Bonus: Baby Pummelweed! You can get elemental warriors either through saving them from shadow trolls or getting them from family members; the ones you save start out as little baby versions called elemental sprites. Pummelweed's is definitely one of the better ones. Also comes with a sick transformation sequence where the little baby hulks out and its eyes go bloodshot as it prepares to do punching, as afflicts all those who must punch.

2: Deep Blue. Fucking excellent design. The vastly superior option between the two water-element warriors, both because Deep Blue is actually pretty fast on land (even though they're the ONLY warrior that can go underwater) and for cheesing utility. I thought Deep Blue would become completely useless after the Contractually-Obligated Water Temple in which you are forced into using them 90% of the time, but their non-damaging water jets (fired from the stumpy sucker-arms) are really useful for knocking enemies off of high ledges for the rest of the game, saving you the trouble of actually having to fight them. Knowing Rare, this is probably less of an exploit and more the expected/required strategy in some parts.

Bonus: Baby Deep Blue! Also a good one because it's just a cuter version of Regular Deep Blue. 10/10

3: Rubble. I just love Rubble's design and animations! The head bobbles atop the pile of rocks as they all roll in unison. Very unique & cute. Unfortunately loses points for falling hard out of relevancy about 1/4 through the game; a lot of low-tier guys are languishing down there because they get used for exactly one area and then forgotten about, and Rubble kind of has that problem. You just get them early enough that they still make a lasting impression.

Bonus: Baby Rubble! This one is a little bit weirder, as it becomes increasingly clear that they had exactly one rig for the elemental sprites, so all the baby versions need to conform to the same body plan. Rubble isn't that bad, looks kinda like the baby from Dinosaurs. Cute ponytail!

4: Major Ruin. Look at this fuckin' guy. Fucking A-tier guy right here. Like a little sorta elephant-armadillo thingy, Major Ruin's gimmick is rolling around in a ball and being used for a ton of physics-based puzzles and platforming. Over-reliance on physics puzzles is kind of a problem in this game, but I'm not gonna take it out on Major Ruin. Even though it's literally the only thing Major Ruin is good for. Major Ruin is a really cool name. Major Ruin.

Bonus: Baby Major Ruin! Really good, looks fucking... pissed off to be here. Me too, Major.

5: 40 Below. You might think that a buff abominable snowman rolling around on a snow trackball would be pretty awesome, and you would almost be right! For some reason 40 Below's gormless attitude failed to endear him to me. He has a gimmick where switching to him makes ice ramps appear in the snow area (approx. 3 ice ramps), but he mainly makes B tier because his spiked snowball spin move has an enormous hitbox that collides with enemy hitboxes and makes him functionally invulnerable until his energy runs out. This is how I cheesed what would otherwise have been a long and annoying final boss battle. Thanks, 40 Below!

Bonus: Baby 40 Below! Resembles any number of cute cartoon snowpersons, with the important addition of the bassist chin tuft. Keep rockin' out little man.

6: Snare. Snare is this high up because she looks like Audrey II. That's obvious. That's most of what she has going for her. BUT, I also found her gimmick of picking stuff up in her giant maw and trebuchet-tossing it out, which is used 2 times in the last 2 hours of the game, to be not-terrible. Snare is the last of the 3 elemental warriors you get for free from Kameo's rescued family members, and that sucks, why did you back-load her, she cannot take this pressure. Is it just because you didn't want to make her baby? Shameful.

7: Ash. Ash is the very first warrior you get for free from the first family member you save, and consequently I feel little emotional attachment to Ash. There's a weird gimmick where they spew fireballs that climb up walls (because they can only shoot them straight ahead). The continuous fire breath attack is pretty strong in some circumstances? I don't know, it's getting a bit thin back here. The other thing I'll say for Ash is that they look like the model that changed the least between the GameCube build and final release.

8: Thermite. Thermite is the very last elemental warrior you unlock, and the strongest in combat because their big lava urn thing shoots bombs in third-person-shooter style. The idea of an elemental warrior that's a tiny little guy with a big artillery piece is very cool, but unfortunately in execution it means you are just looking at a big urn 100% of the time and you can barely see the little guy if you try really hard to angle the camera down. The gameplay is sorta there, Thermite feels suitably powerful for the endgame, just not my favorite to play as.

Bonus: Baby Thermite! This one is pretty fucked up. Why does it have the little dingly dongle in back and also antennae? Would it really have been that fuckin' hard to make it, like... the same color? I dunno man, this one is pretty lazy. Another casualty of Too Many Guys.

9: Chilla. I'm so sorry, Chilla. I'm putting the #1 flagship weird guy next-to-last. The design is solid, Chilla gets a lot of playtime, but unfortunately Chilla just sucks. Gimmicks include climbing ice walls using an ugly set of animations (present in two locations: the ice zone and the final boss' castle, which is IN A VOLCANO), chucking ice spears (hard to aim because the camera snaps to where Chilla is facing instead of where you're looking, they don't do a lot of damage and he gets like 10 of them before he gets tired [THIS IS HIS MAIN ATTACK]), and sticking trolls to his back and then pulling them off to throw/use as a club (fucking atrocious range and damage and it takes so much effort, just use someone else jesus christ).

Chilla would have been a very cute baby but unfortunately he comes free with a purchase of $15 or more at the Water Temple, so you'll just have to imagine it.

10: Flex. I feel bad for Flex. It's an alright design, but the execution lets it down. Flex's single foot is procedurally animated and the body is subtly constrained to a fixed radius around it as it moves, but the body glides completely smoothly like it's hovering a fixed distance above the ground. It feels unnatural and looks bad. On top of this, flex's gimmick of grabbing onto distant grapple points (read: weird blue piranha plant tongues) is used in exactly one area, and Flex has little general combat utility so you're not likely to use them elsewhere. The definition of a bottom-tier weird guy. Sucks to play as, but fortunately you only have to for one part and then you can forget they exist. Oh, and there's one more contributing factor:

Malus: Baby Flex?! What the fuck, man.

In conclusion, 10 is too many weird guys. Make fewer weird guys that are better, probably. Like Scaler (2004).

Also some of these characters suck because the energy meter sucks! The foresight to integrate the character design with the combat focus by giving every character an attack that can be done without expending energy was absent from the design, among other things. If they were just allowed to be awesome and kick ass nonstop (like they're supposed to be able to do in-universe) they'd be a lot somewhat better. Not you, Flex. Sorry.

#kameo elements of power #it is a game

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bestworstcase · 1 year ago

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Hey I think I remember you talking about the wonderland musical (or maybe just the original book) and mentioning a jabberwocky poem/riddle thing. Would you mind expanding on that thought?

hrgk this is tricky because i did talk about both jabberwocky (the poem, from the book) and the jabberwock’s riddle (from the 2009/2010 iterations of the musical) and they are not at all the same thing BUT as i recall i elaborated quite a bit more on the poem than the riddle at the time. so.

in brief: the earlier iterations of wonderland were premised on alice being a best-selling new author under intense pressure to write a sequel while her marriage and mental health disintegrates on account of her feeling pulled in a million directions at once. in wonderland—which is her dream, or her soul, sort of—she’s repeatedly confronted with the question “who are you?” and repeatedly reminded that this is a very different question from “what’s your name?”. this in no way stops her from answering with her name every time, with increasing frustration. it is gently implied that she literally cannot wake up until she answers it properly.

the jabberwock, in this world, is a monstrous threshold guardian representing the unwritten pages of the book she hasn’t written. he guards the door to the eighth square (of the chessboard), where she needs to confront the hatter (herself, her dark mirror) and put all her pieces back together before she can go home. his riddle, the final riddle, is sort of a test and also sort of a guiding hand to lead alice to where she needs to be in order to prevail.

it goes like this:

JABBER: What are you looking for? ALICE: This is a test, right? JABBER: Right! ALICE: Riddles—puzzles—I’ve had enough! JABBER: What are you looking for? ALICE: It’s complicated! JABBER: What are you going to do about it? ALICE: I’m trying to figure that out. JABBER: What are you looking for? ALICE: …I’m looking for my lost child. JABBER: Who’s stopping you? ALICE: I am! I keep getting in my own way, it’s all I do! JABBER: Who do you think you are? ALICE: [frustrated] I’m Alice Cornwinkle— JABBER: NO! Not that answer again!! [skipping a bit where she answers with her name and then uses the backwards watch to force him to give her a second try here] ALICE: I’m Chloe’s mom, I’m married to Jack, these two are my friends, I’m lots of things, I’m my own invention! JABBER: So what are you afraid of? ALICE: …Everyone’s afraid of something. That’s how you know you love someone, when you’re afraid of losing them.

& then he lets her through to face the hatter (and experience that fear through the death of the white knight, who represents her husband)

deep breath

anyway the point of the jabberwock’s riddle is that alice has hitherto spent all of her time ripping herself apart trying to be everything everybody wants her to be. (literally, “there’s just not enough of me/way too much to do and be/too many places to belong/too many right things going wrong/too little left for staying strong” is her establishing character moment and the opening number only gets more desperate from there.) and of course in doing that she’s completely lost touch with who she is and what she wants, and wonderland is a reckoning.

so she has to find her “lost child” (who is really her, not her daughter) and she has to accept that her family is more important to her than doing what she’s expected to as a new author, first because trying to meet those expectations is making her miserable and second because she loves her family. and doing that breaks her writer’s block because the perfect ideal writer she was trying to be can’t write her book, only she can do that. and the jabberwock is the unwritten book itself screaming out of her subconscious to remind her of that. she’s the only one who can “tame” him, save her friends from him by solving his riddle.

and well,

gestures at 9.9 & 9.10. but especially 10.

RUBY: Are you just trying to tell me that it’s useless? That I shouldn’t even try? Is that the big lesson I’m supposed to learn? Just… give up? Become someone else?

BLACKSMITH: Is that what I’m telling you?

[…]

RUBY: What happens if I choose me?

BLACKSMITH: Then maybe that girl is enough.

(whispers into a cup) that is the lesson the god of light tried to teach salem though. for the record.

the mood of the scenes is different, obviously—rwby strikes a much more somber tone—but the emotional essence is the same. ruby, too, is confronted repeatedly with a question, “what are you?” that she keeps answering wrong because she doesn’t understand what’s really being asked (and it is, fundamentally, the same question that alice has to answer—who are you, what are you, what is the essence of you?). her friends are in danger, and she needs to get to the last door so she can go home, but she has to answer the question properly first. and, like alice, she needs someone to push her reach that answer, because she’s too caught up in her pain and frustration to get it right the first time.

“not that answer again!” “is that what i’m telling you?”—the jabberwock can’t give alice hers answer any more than the blacksmith can give ruby hers, but both of them refute the wrong answer in no uncertain terms.

and that’s the jabberwock’s riddle. the wrong answer, the realization of the wrong answer, and the triumph of the right answer.

#they wrote volume nine for me #i’m the fan being pandered to. me personally

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avoskorm · 2 years ago

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Finally beat Ganon in BotW this morning.

After doing literally everything else in that game.

I even got the motorbike Master Cycle. Waaaaay past the point at which it would actually be useful for me, but still. I like doing side stuff before main quests, so the MC was on the back burner until the last minute lmao.

So yeah. Finally done with BotW. And I have Opinions about it.

Weapon degradation sucks. I have always hated that as a mechanic. Even the Master Sword has it, and it sucks. It could have been better incorporated if they'd even just made it so the Master Sword passively recharged when not actively being used, rather than having to use it a set amount of times, it "breaks" then you have to wait for it to charge completely before being able to use it again.

I'm not sure if the game is trying to encourage combat or stealth. With the weapon degradation (which sucks, I may have mentioned), I'm leaning more towards stealth. But then there are mandatory fights, and boss fights. If you've been doing more stealth to avoid damaging your kit, then hooray you have weapons with which to fight, but absolutely zero practice with the combat.

The addition of Majora's Mask kind of exacerbates this, as it's basically every monster mask rolled into one, so I personally almost never fought anything unless I absolutely had to.

"Absolutely had to" usually referred to my cover getting blown by Octoroks, Chuchus, and/or Keese.

I find it odd that you can't really defend yourself without a weapon. You can't even punch. If you don't even have so much as a stick, you're basically screwed. I know remote bombs are available, but they do barely any damage to most things, unless they're the really, really low tier monsters.

The best horse is obviously Epona, which is paywalled. Which is kind of balanced out by the fact that horses overall are pretty useless. Epona herself can't have her tack changed, so you can't put the Ancient Armour on her, so you can't call her from anywhere. Which is largely what makes them useless, I guess.

Not enough outfit slots for every piece of clothing in game, even if you're not planning on doing on in every colour like some people have tried (and I thought I was a crazy collector)

Some upgraded outfit sets completely trivialise some of the puzzles, even in the DLC dungeons. And I'm 100% okay with that lmao

I really, really wish there was a better camera, or better yet a proper photo mode. Even the pictures you can take in the game with the Sheikah Slate, you can't really do anything with them, and screencapping them is pointless because the image is about half the size with the border and the Sheikah-style scan lines covering it.

The maps inside the castle and the Divine Beasts are confusing. At least to me they are. I prefer not having a rotating map, so when it's forced that way for the castle/ Divine Beasts, I have to check the map constantly and try and figure out where the hell I am. I'm aware that's probably a me problem.

The Trial of the Sword is probably harder than it should be. If you need a stronger version of the Master Sword to get through the game, you're not going to be able to complete the trials. If you can complete the trials, you probably don't need the sword.

There's a side quest where a Zora girl has you escort a love letter to basically a pen pal down river. You eventually find the recipient is a grown-ass man. The Zora is a child. What the fuck, Nintendo? He calls her "darling" at the end, and I felt really uncomfortable helping with this. It's probably supposed to be cute and I'm reading too much into it but still.

I think that's everything.

It's probably not everything.

#nothing to see here #harry plays breath of the wild #harry has Opinions #long post

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katsukavi · 4 years ago

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I wanted to make this a full fanfiction on my wattpad, but I didn’t want to disappoint everyone with the super slow updates (like my scumlord lol) so.. here’s crap I pulled out of my notes called arise, undead (“pretty obsessed” sung jin-woo x male, zombie reader) I also really like the options I have in tumblr lol. I’m a little embarrassed to add tags because I’m not sure if people will like it and stuff.. But yeah! This is the book cover I made for it here too! :D

Im having too much fun with these new stuff~ (please excuse me. this is my first long post and i love everything here—)

(spoilers)

The plot is that Jin-Woo finds an undead in the woods, tries to arise him and it does work. Now they fight together because the zombie has no memories and is literally immortal (yet dead). Near the end, they discover that MC was murdered and his body was buried in the woods yada yada. Then when Jin-Woo goes back, he has to save him. But, he has to save MC as a 15 year old while MC is a 27 year old..

(I planned that part out and I think it’s a little funny how suddenly a kid approaches you like “You’re going to die if you go somewhere. Come with me, I’m your lover from the future.”

“Ah, it’s a chuunibyou.. Sorry kid, but I need to go to work—“

“No.”

‘Alive or not, MC still looks like a zombie.. Why are you so overworked?!’)

IT WAS SUNG JIN-WOO’S FIRST TIME using his new job skills, so naturally he’d get excited in testing every single little thing about it. He just exited the purple hued portal behind him, feeling like he acquired an interesting new toy to play with. Even though he was tired from the lack of sleep, his joy kept him from passing out.

Either it was that, or the rain pouring over his head. All his excitement flushed into disappointment as his shoes got muddy from the damp forest foor and his clothes getting completely soaked in rainwater. It would be impossible to pass out with the loud thunder rumbling in the background.

He cursed with every step on his path, finding it hard to walk with the slippery and uneven soil, his vision blurry from water and dark skies and his body dragging itself against harsh rain. Unfortunately, he was also already very exhausted.

Out of all the times for a thunderstorm, why did it have to be right after the job change quest?

From behind the trees, he heard a low distorted roar—forcing him to dip his head towards it’s direction. He held a dagger in one hand, trying to make out its shape from behind the trees.

It was in a humanoid shape, making him relax just a little bit. “Is anyone there?” he questioned.

His voice seemed to reach the stranger as they left their hiding spot in the trees’ shade. The person looked to be a man wearing a formal suit, diluted blood marking over his chest and face. Even though he looked human, he didn’t seem to breathe, just limply staring at Jin-Woo with a blank and lifeless expression.

Strangely, the stranger’s (s/c) skin was pale, like blood hasn’t been pumping through his veins. But attacking a person because they looked really sick wasn’t a good thing, it’s like attacking an overworked person because they looked so dead. It was either it was too dark or the view was too blurry.

“Hello?” Jin-Woo called out one time, staying cautious from the stranger. It lunged at Jin-Woo with a raspy growl, nearly scratching his face. Jin-Woo ducked, a small scratch appearing on his face from the speed. It definitely wasn’t human.

Sung Jin-Woo was already fatigued, at a disadvantage with the location as well. He cursed, barely dodging every slash thrown at him. “Igris!” he called out, the shadow materialising from behind him. Igris grabbed the humanoid monster, a splash of mud splattering around as it was thrown.

Sung Jin-Woo stabbed it deep in the chest, not a single drop of blood spilling out as he stepped back to breathe. He put his hands on his knees, staring at the lifeless corpse as he sent Igris back. ‘It seems pretty strong.. Should I extract it?’

He took a deep breath, getting closer to the body as he raised his hand. His posture was elegant, holding a composed expression as droplets of rain streamed down his attractive face, adding to his charm. A deep and soothing voice left his mouth, sending chills to anyone who would hear it.

“Arise.”

Though unfortunately, the Shadow Monarch was greeted with nothing but silence and the sound of ambient rain. That’s odd, if it was a failed extraction then a notification would pop up to let him know or something. Was the system suddenly broken? If that’s the case, he should try again.

“Arise.. arise. ARISE!” he shouted multiple times, but a shadow didn’t get extracted. He furrowed his brows, squatting down to find out the cause of his skill suddenly breaking. “Why isn’t it working..?” he mumbled under his breath, getting closer to the body with a puzzled look on his face.

“Arise. Arise. Arise arise arise. Wake up. Rise and shine. Arise. Awake. Good morning. Arise.”

“I’m not dead yet, dimwit.”

Did the body just.. talk back to him?

“You didn’t hear anything,” Jin-Woo blurted out, getting embarrassed from the montage of Arise and synonyms he was saying to something that was alive. He stabbed the body once again, trying to kill it as he attempted once more. “Arise.”

“You don’t have to try again. I’m not dead,” the man just sat up like it was just his average tuesday, sliding out the blade from his chest, handing it to Jin-Woo and dusting off his clothes. The undead just raised his head towards the sky, watching clouds part as he lifted his palm, no more droplets landing on top of it. “Oh, the rain is clearing up.”

“Excuse me. Didn’t you just try to attack me?”

“Did I? I don’t remember,” the stranger scratched the back of his neck, looking bored as he yawned. “My name is (L/n) (M/n), age 27. And you are?”

“Sung Jin-Woo, 24.”

“Nice meeting you. Now where in the hell am I?”

/////////////////////////////

(L/N) (M/N) HAD A NASTY SCOWL on his face, plopping the sewing kit on Jin-Woo’s bed as he angrily tried to open it with one arm. Unfortunately, someone had cut off his right arm that he spent ages trying to sew back on.

“What next, my leg?” he cursed under his breath as Sung Jin-Woo opened it for him. “Wait a minute,” Jin-Woo said, sticking the end of his arm to his shoulder. “Hold this,” he said, making (M/n) keep his limb in one place as he put the thread in the needle.

“What?” The zombie still looked very angry, knitting his brows together as he held still. “I thought you needed a hand,” Jin-Woo lightly joked, trying to make (M/n)’s mood towards him a little better. The undead male gave him his signature dead stare, tightly holding his severed upper arm before speaking.

“Jin-Woo, I am dead serious here.”

He started to lightly chuckle, noticing that Sung Jin-Woo was almost finished with sewing his arm back on his body. “Hey, you’re pretty good at this.” His remark made Jin-Woo smile as he opened and closed his hand, almost as if it was brand new.

“My clothes kept getting ripped when I was E-Rank. I learned naturally.”

“The next time you rip off my limbs, please fix them too,” (M/n) said, flailing his right hand in the air with satisfaction.

“Well next time. I’m sure I’ll make you mine.”

“I doubt that.”

///////////////////////////// (now it’s just random dialogues i pulled out of my idea dump lol)

“OH HECK! There goes my leg!”

“Oh no... He’s dead! It’s not like I’m happy about it or anything~! ...Arise arise arise arise—“

“IM NOT DEAD!”

“God damn it.. Jin-Woo, could you go fetch my torso, and my arms and my legs and uh.. my head. Yes, thank you.”

“You don’t have a heartbeat and your skin is ice cold. I stabbed you 32 times. How are you still moving?”

“Dunno, ask Jesus.”

“I CAN’T BREATHE! I’M DYING.”

“You don’t breathe, (M/n).”

“Oh yeah, you’re right.”

“Sometimes I wonder if you want me dead or if you want me alive. Which one is it?”

“Either way is fine as long as you’re mine.”

“Gross, necrophiliac.”

“Good night, (M/n).”

“Good night, Jin-Woo..”

“Alright.. arise arise arise arise arise arise arise—“

“Once again, I am not dead.”

“You’re not useless, (M/n). Because when you die, I WILL MAKE YOU MY SHADOW.”

“HOW IS THAT SUPPOSED TO COMFORT ME?!”

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nightcoremoon · 3 years ago

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oblivion/skyrim and fallout 3/4 have done permanent and irreparable damage to the RPG playerbase, and it’s why so many people think that dark souls is hard. yes, I am serious.

now, here’s the thing. the games themselves are fine. in fact, they’re fucking revolutionary. arena was fine, daggerfall was phenomenal but too overly ambitious for the technology at hand, morrowind is one of the greatest RPGs ever made, oblivion was really good for its time and it’s still serviceable today (it’s completely broken but hey so is Vampire and New Vegas), and skyrim… is fucking skyrim. it’s one of the best games ever made, hands down. fallout 1 was great, fallout 2 was amazing, and fallout 3 was very very good for its time. which is good because it is now literally unplayable since the steam version doesn’t work, the gog version barely works, the windows game center version no longer exists anymore. but even if it was, it’s still a mess of bad design decisions.

let me get this out of the way. there are worse games. this is the nickelback argument. nickelback is not the worst band in the world. it’s just the most popular band in the “worst good bands of all time list”. there are a dozen worse bands than nickelback I can think of off the top of my head (for proof: dommin, buckcherry, hinder, puddle of mudd, creed, sugar ray, oasis, four non blondes, simple plan, all time low, the all american rejects, and the plain white Ts. I don’t think these bands are BAD per se, they’re just not as good as nickelback is). the issue is that, like nickelback, bethesda’s RPGS are massively overrated. there are bad bands out there: every grindcore band is bad (since grindcore is bad on purpose), blood on the dance floor is bad, brokencyde is bad, the medic droid is bad. myspacecore exists so there is not a snowball’s chance in hell that nickelback is genuinely at the bottom of the barrel. same with skyrim and Fo4. bubsy 3D, postal 3, charlie’s angels, afro samurai 2, leisure suit larry (the really bad one), ride to hell, big rigs, action 52, desert bus, jekyll and hyde, ET atari! NOW THOSE ARE SOME GENUINELY SHITTY GAMES. skyrim is cohesive. functional. has good elements. lots of content, lots of variety, depth in places. it is not a “bad game”. but it’s definitely one of the worst good games ever made. and here’s why.

there is literally zero difficulty.

yes there is a slider available that adjusts how much damage you deal and receive. I am aware. acolyte novice master and legendary, whatever, THAT DOESNT COUNT. adjusting the numbers isn’t real difficulty. it’s imaginary. it’s artificial. it’s not real. the difference between easy and hard should not be “you shoot the bad guy three times instead of two times” because that’s just fucking stupid. it’s a complete waste of time, and it doesn’t require any actual skill. memorization, diligence, patience, focus, sure, but spending four hours on memorizing left right left right up down up down b a select start BOOM win! is dumb. good difficulty, real difficulty, is a lot more in depth and involved. take metro 2033: its hard difficulty is removing the HUD, forcing you to keep a closer eye on the more immersive bits of the interface, because every single piece of information on your hud is visible somewhere on artyom’s body, like the rig in dead space, which changes how much ammo enemies drop. resident evil 4 has different enemy spawns on professional than it does on DA1 normal (or easy), and enemies move faster on pro. mass effect 2 has multiple different layers of enemy armor which forces more tactical decision making skills- this has the unfortunate side effect of rendering most of the other characters useless (only miranda zaeed garrus grunt are good on higher difficulty) but it’s still a tangible difference that’s not just “give the bad guy more meat on his bones”. resident evil madhouse/hardcore move items around and limit saves. silent hill (the good ones) changes the puzzles. fallout new vegas hardcore adds food water and sleep to the game, plus it enables NPC and companion permadeath, and alters the way healing is done (stimpaks are HoTs instead). guitar hero adds the number of note frets used on the board.

fallout 3? you shoot the bad guy more times and then spam more stimpaks afterwards.

skyrim? you stab the bad guy more times and then eat more cheese wheels afterwards.

people have grown complacent playing these games this way, save scumming for better results and more favorable outcomes, abusing the ill thought out merchant systems, selling everything they find that wasn’t nailed to the floor just to buy more cheese and stims because you can brute force your way through the whole game with just the 10mm pistol or the flaming poisoning raging sword of doom if you just spam more stimpaks and cheese wheels. just press X on every npc, let the game record the quests you get and put it on your map so you can blindly follow the flashing blinky light, press r1 a hundred times until the bad guy dies, pick up everything, sell it to whoever, buy a billion more cheese and stims, lather rinse repeat. you don’t even need to think. just press the button and get the corn. just press the button and get the corn. just press the button… and get… the corn.

god forbid you have to actually look around, god forbid you have to actually read, god forbid you have to actually listen to the NPCs, god forbid you need to follow directions and landmarks and hold a 3d space in your mind without the use of a physical map or a flashy blinky light in the corner. god forbid you have to actually learn the boss moveset and time your dodges to not get hit because you only have 5 heals because you’re too stupid to figure out the kindle system. god forbid you can’t save scum because there’s only auto save and you actually have consequences for your actions. god forbid you have to read the description of your keys so you don’t just shit yourself crying to twitch chat WHERE DO I GOOOOOO???????? I DONT UNDERSTAND THIS GAME IS SO HAAAAAARRRRRRDDDD T.T

the most hilarious part is that, within minutes of beating the tutorial, you can literally suicide run to the graveyard and get the zweihander which kills almost every burg hollow in one hit, definitely two hits. it does 140 damage, everything else does maybe 80, 90 if you’re lucky. and when every enemy had a defense stat of like 50, that’s well over a 200% maybe even 300% damage increase. every enemy telegraphs their attacks so far in advance you can literally walk away, walk around to their backs, and you don’t even need to get a backstab, you can just swing and the counter damage will kill them instantly. you have to think spatially & critically. you have to actually use your brain to beat each encounter.

skyrim and fallout 4’s popularity has enabled complacent play styles in far too many people, so the moment they find a game that you actually need to respect and pay attention to and develop actual tangible skill to progress, clearly the game is just too hard because the devs are trolls and miyazaki hates you. it can’t POSSIBLY be that you just suck.

it’s absurdly easy to git gud. it just takes more than 30 seconds of thinking it’s dynasty warriors, getting your ass kicked in, then punching a hole in your monitor.

and, dark souls does have an easy mode. it’s reach the credits once then put the game down forever. that is easy mode. new game IS easy mode, because the REAL game is new game plus. that’s what the game was actually built around. new game is just the tutorial. one long tutorial. I don’t wanna hear one more person whine and complain that taurus demon is ~too hard~ when I’m going toe to toe with artorias NG+ because he’s the only enemy that gives me any trouble whatsoever. you just need to stop asking the internet how to play and then seeing “learn to parry” as “hide behind a shield forever and then act shocked when you die to an unblockable attack that you should have learned to roll from 20 hours ago. you need to stop googling “how do I beat X” every time it takes you more than one try. you need to stop expecting it to hand you everything on a silver platter like skyrim and fallout 3 did. because this is not skyrim or fallout. this is dark souls. it’s not devil may cry, which is ACTUALLY really fucking hard. it’s not hard. it’s literally just… different.

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a3hastakenovermylife · 4 years ago

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Ok, I really, really want some quality interaction between Kazunari and Taichi.

Like I know that we all joke about them because they’re our energetic, adorable, puppy pair, and yes, that is who they are on the surface. But, when you simplify their whole character arcs down to just that, you’re flattening their characters and you lose the depth that the game hints at for the both of them.

The game did a really great job at letting Taichi flush out a decent sized character arc, and concluded that story in a satisfying way during the Autumn Troupe arc. We see our sunshine boy upset, withdrawn, and separating himself from the others out of guilt. Then we see him distraught over the things he’s done and being comforted by Omi (honestly my favorite interaction in the whole series, second only to Juza and Banri high-fiving). Then we see him confessing to the others, and they all retell their portraits to one another, and Taichi finally gets to accept that he’s been forgiven, and more than that, that he’s been truly accepted into the troupe. For the first time, he gets to understand that he will get to act, he’s going to have the opportunity to do what he loves and he’s going to be able to do it with people he’s come to care so much about.

Taichi is in a much better place at the end of the Autumn Troupe arc, and we can see the potential for that to grow in the future. However, I do not feel like we get to nearly the same place with Kazunari.

With Kazunari, we begin to understand that he puts on a front with other people, that he acts all happy and tends to agree with everyone as to not ruffle any feathers. He’s never had a group of real friends before the Summer Troupe, and when confronted with the fact that he not only doesn’t have to pretend to be neutral, that his friends don't want him to be. Kazunari made some real progress here, he did stand tall and give his opinion, but he isn’t shown to make any other significant changes. Nor, can we tell whether this was a permanent change.

He’s still the same energetic Kazunari, friendly and fun-loving as always. I can’t help but feel like his character arc was left mostly incomplete, we know there's a problem, but we haven't taken many steps to fix it, nor does it seem like Kazu has had any change in attitude. He’s still bottling most of his emotions up, refusing to show anything other than his cheery smile.

Here’s where we get into some of my own characterization here, because as a freshmen art major myself, I know, I know, that college isn't easy. On top of all of that, trying to pretend that everything is fine, is like putting a band-aid on a stab wound. The longer you hold everything in, the more mentally isolated you make yourself. Even surrounded by kind, loving, caring people, you can feel totally alone. On top of that, place his pre-existing tendency to hide any and all of his real opinions and feelings, which isn't the kind of mental behavior you can fix overnight.

What you’re left with is a ticking time bomb.

No human being can be happy all the time. It's just not possible.

When a human being is upset, they will need help eventually. Especially, a college student, stepping out into the world for the first time on their own, a pseudo-adult who likes to pretend they've grown up already.

Kazunari needs that character arc of his to be finished, because right now, he's sitting in a limbo within which he can never truly be happy, or relaxed. Simply because he hasn’t taken the time to learn how to open up to his friends.

Now, here's where my Taichi and Kazu interaction comes in.

(Ok, I started this just as an idea post and lo and behold it became almost as long as a fic. This is literally just my word vomit, so I apologize in advance for any poor grammar, spelling mistakes, and unclear transitions that occur, but please enjoy and tell me if you want me to make this a proper fic)

Taichi has for the most part evolved through his character arc, he's in a good place now and is growing closer to everyone in the company. Meanwhile, Kazu seems to be falling out of sync with everyone, he’s way less chatty, he spends most of his time by himself, and while when he's actually in the room with them he is acting relatively normal. Every single time anybody asks him if something is bothering him, he laughs and brushes the concern off easily. However, his troupe mates can hear how forced the laugh sounds.

It’s something that happens over a few months, but Summer Troupe is very worried. They’ve taken to having weekly meetings in the common area while Kazu is doing his homework to try and puzzle out what’s been going on with him. The others share their concern as well, the point is that now the whole company is determined to get to the bottom of whatever is up with him.

I bet you anything that Omi notices the similarities right away. This is way to eerily similar to the way Taichi was acting during those last few weeks before everything came to light. He probably approaches Kazu to talk several times but is shut down at every turn by a forced laugh, or an easy excuse like ‘I’m just a bit tired.’ or ‘Just been super busy lately, that's all.’.

Taichi, himself, probably notices too, but he really doesn't want to stick his nose into something that felt so incredibly personal. He lets it go because he knows how helpful it was when his troupe mates let him talk out his troubles, and listened, and accepted him for all his faults. He feels if he buts in now, he’ll just take that opportunity from Kazu, and he’d never do something that.

The Summer Troupe keeps trying, and one night they all approach him at once, determined not to let this go until he fesses up. They all corner him in his room and start to ask questions, and Tenma and Yuki are almost certainly going to be coming off as being a bit harsh, but who can blame them Kazu has been worrying the both of them senseless for months, and neither of them are the type to mince their words.

Muku is especially emotional throughout the whole thing, he’s had a front row seat to this slow motion train-wreck this whole time, living in the same room as Kazu. He sees how late he stays up, and how often he gets no sleep at all, he's the one who sees the cracks beginning to form in the persona Kazu has built up for himself. He even mentions one particularly horrible night when Kazu was crying in his sleep. By that point though, Muku is relatively incomprehensible through his own crying.

Misumi is mostly watching, agreeing with the others, saying supportive words, but mostly standing aside, looking and feeling a little helpless.

This is Kazu’s breaking point. Kazu has been spiraling for months. It started with feeling horrible and stressed about his classes, then evolved to worrying about how he always hid that fact from the others, then to feeling guilty about being so dishonest about his feelings, then to feeling even more guilty about pushing them away when they were clearly worried and not being able to reciprocate their kindness with even the most basic courtesy of honesty.

Seeing all of them like this, pouring their hearts out to reach him, it just made him feel worse. He wanted them to understand, but some part of him was certain that they never could. That even if he could speak right then, that none of it could make them understand. There was also a traitorous part of his mind that heard Tenma’s frustrated shout and Yuki’s sarcastic drawl, and only hear accusation and condemnation.

He knew it was stupid, that his friends would never actually feel that way about him. He knew that.

That didn’t stop that little traitorous voice in his head from taking the steering wheel though, it didn’t stop it from completely taking over. He was on his feet and pushing past them out of the room before he even knew what he was doing. He vaguely recognized the feeling of someone grabbing a hold of his shoulder and he forcefully pulls away, running faster than he even knew he was capable of out of the dorm.

The voices calling for him to come back, concerned, worried, crying. Concern for him, and he can't even turn around to look at them, he can barely even hear them. He keeps running, longer than his body should have been able to run, faster than he ever thought possible. He tripped more than once and was left with scrapes from each time. The others tried to follow him, but in the darkness, it seems that none of them had succeeded.

Or maybe, the same voice whispered. They’ve just decided to give up on you.

Meanwhile, the Summer troupe meets back at the dorm, and they get the others to come help them look for Kazunari. To say the least, Summer Troupe is pretty distraught, all things considered. Muku is an even worse than he’d been earlier, having given up entirely on trying to talk, Yuki has made it his responsibility to keep Muku from falling over, having to prop him up through most of their search, and he’s become oddly quiet as he does so.

Misumi actually does cry for a few minuites for Kazu, he's so incredibly sad that he can’t seem to do anything to help. However, he doesn't let it keep him down. It's no more than five minutes before he stands up with a half-smile to help search for him again.

Tenma, is just oddly quiet, like way too quiet, more quiet than even Yuki. Only speaking in clipped one-word sentences, and mostly even then, only answering questions addressed to him. He's clearly frustrated, but more than that, he almost seems remorseful. By this point, he’s feeling pretty guilty and useless himself. He is the leader of this troupe after all, and it is his responsibility to take care of stuff like this isn’t it?

It’s early in the morning, and the whole company has been searching for hours when it starts to rain. It's at this point that the director just says that they should head back and get some sleep. Tenma does not take that order well. After a very loud and long argument with Tenma, the most that he’s spoken all night, he finally gives in when he sees the state the rest of his troupe is in, Muku has practically fainted already, Yuki was on the verge of tears himself and Misumi was just staring blankly into space dejectedly.

So, with that everyone heads back to the dorm to go to sleep.

------------

It’s only after they're back inside, dried off, and the lights are off that Taichi realizes that he can’t sleep. He was close with Kazu, they’d always meshed really well together and got along really well. When he’d seen a reflection of himself in Kazu, he'd let it go, and now he was really starting to regret it. He should have realized, that just because Taichi had had Omi to help him work up the courage to confess what he’d done to the rest of the troupe, and to help him sort out his feelings. Omi was practically an adult, he was so mature and always seemed to know what to do.

Summer Troupe didn't really have an Omi. Kazu was actually the oldest of the bunch of them. He should have spoken up sooner, tried to help Kazu through it, if he’d just said something earlier, the situation might not have gotten this far out of control. Taichi had desperately needed someone to give him the courage to speak up when he’d been in such a dark place and, something told him that Kazu needed the same thing, and that nothing would change at all until he got that much.

He might have school in a few hours, and it might still be raining, but Taichi honestly didn't care. He couldn't sit still any longer. He got up from the covers, and grabbed his jacket and was about to open the door to their room when he heard Omi sit up.

“You’re going to go look for Kazunari aren’t you?” He asked.

Taichi blinked and stammered, trying to come up with some other excuse, and epically failing. It was too hard to lie to Omi though, especially after everything that had happened between them. Omi just chuckled, and told him not to worry so much. Omi stood and opened his own closet, pulling out a spare backpack, and placing a large towel, an oversized poncho, and an umbrella in the bag, then handed it to Taichi. Then silently lead Taichi along to the kitchen, where he pulled out a large thurmace and heated up some hot cocoa to put inside, then handed that to Taichi as well.

“I think that you might be one of the only people who can get through to Kazunari, you realize that too don’t you?” Omi said softly, as to not wake the others. Taichi nodded emphatically, a little stunned that Omi was just letting him go no matter how irresponsible of an idea it was. “Alright, then. Good luck, and bring him home.”

Taichi nodded and just as soon as he had gotten outside he started running. It was still dark and rainy, but at least there were plenty of streetlights. He called out to Kazunari and he called and called. Mostly though, Taichi was looking, looking for any sign of a person, anywhere. By now, he was pretty sure that Kazu wasn’t going to reply to the call, but he did it anyway, just in case.

Eventually, about an hour in, his voice got raw and he needed to take a break. He stopped talking, and sat down on just some random street corner, not caring one bit that his pants were now wet.

It wasn't any good, he wasn't going to find him was he?

He sat dejectedly on the concrete, just listening to the rain and feeling his pants begin to get soggy. He didn't know how long he sat there before he heard it.

It was faint, so incredibly quiet, that even the light sound of raindrops nearly drowned it out entirely.

Yet, if he listened hard enough he heard crying. He hoped he wasn't just his desperation getting to him, making him hear things. He stood up eagerly anyway, staying silent and trying to follow the sound before it stopped. It was hard, really hard, and the sky was starting to lighten just a minuscule shade when he finally made it to the mouth of the alley.

There Kazu was, Taichi could just barely make out the top of his head poking out from behind a stack of abandoned boxes. He was absolutely drenched to the bone, there was no way he wasn't going to get sick after this. He was crying softly, his head ducked and his arms hugging himself.

Taichi carefully approached Kazu and found himself at a loss for a moment. The very last thing he wanted was for him to run off again, and he really didn't want to startle him either. What he settled on was taking the umbrella and the towel out, and holding the umbrella with one arm, while he dried Kazu’s head off to the best of his ability with only one arm to work with. Kazu stiffened but didn't move, his crying coming to an abrupt halt as he held his breath.

“Hey, Kazu. It’s just me, Taichi.”

Kazunari gave a shaky sigh of relief at his voice. “Damn, Tai-chan don’t scare me like that ok? Thought you were gonna mug me or something...” It was clear that Kazu was trying to put up his barriers again, and not quite managing it.

“Sorry, about that.” Taichi apologized, more than a little relieved that Kazunari had actually spoken to him right off the bat. That was farther than the rest of Summer Troupe had gotten. Taichi fumbled a bit before he decided to sit next to Kazu, after it seemed clear that he wasn’t too keen on moving.

Silence settled between the two of them, Kazu seemed to be trying desperately to reign his emotions back under control. Taichi was just trying to think of how to start this, what to say. He thought about how Omi had approached him, but something told Taichi that Kazu wouldn't connect well with that.

It didn't help that he had no idea why Kazu was so upset, or what had caused this, or if anything really had caused it. There might not be one cause. It was more than a little overwhelming, Taichi really really really didn't want to mess this up.

He couldn’t do nothing again though, that wasn't an option, he had to say something, anything.

He decided, to just say whatever came to mind. To say how he felt, and hope to every god out there that it reached him.

“You know, it’s impossible for a person to be happy all the time, don't you?” Taichi asked. Kazunari didn't respond, and Taichi decided that was ok. He’d just keep talking for now. “I won’t pretend that I know why you’re so upset, because I don’t. It’s ok if you don't really want to talk about it right now, I get it. Though, if you’re up to it, I would really appreciate it if you listened to my story.”

Taichi waited until he saw Kazunari nod, the other teen seemingly relaxing a bit beside him. Taichi smiled at the sight, and began to speak.

(Authors note: in this story only Autumn troupe and Yuki (+ the director) know about the fact that Taichi was a mole. Not because they're keeping secrets, just because the others never asked and nobody thought to tell them. Mostly, I don't know for sure if any of the others know, and I like to imagine that they don't know, or at least not the full story.)

Taichi essentially performed his portrait for Kazunari, by the end the other teen was actually looking up at him. Taichi continued though, even after his story normally ended.

“You see, whatever you feel so upset about, guilty about even, I doubt it'll be worse than the things I've done. Even if it is, I know that your troupe mates would listen and try their best to understand why. No matter what it is, no matter what might have happened. They care a lot about you, and the only reason they got so frustrated is because they hate seeing you hurting like this, they were only trying to help, you know...”

“Yeah, I know that...” Kazu looked away again. Though, this time he didn't curl in on himself like before, he leaned back and looked to the sky, which was already beginning to lighten in color. “How did you know I was feeling guilty?”

“I guess, I can just tell? I don't know, it's a bit freaky actually.” Taichi gave a nervous chuckle, then his expression softened a bit to match the sincerity in hie voice. “I saw your expression, and it was almost like I was looking in the mirror, I got this weird sense of de ja vu, and I could just tell. That probably doesn’t make any sense does it...”

“Never experienced it myself, but I get what you're talking about.” Kazu replied with a sigh, closing his eyes. The two of them stay quiet for a minute, Taichi got the feeling that Kazunari was just on the verge of telling him something, so he was patient, giving the other teen the chance to gather his thoughts.

“You know, hearing all that you just said, it almost makes me feel a bit silly. This is such a stupid thing to get so worked up over, ‘ya know.” Kazu shook his head at himself. “It’s always been stupid, and I’ve always known that but I can't help it. I’m always terrified of what others will think, if I don't keep a smile on my face. More than that, I’m so used to pushing all of my worries aside that I don’t even know how to face them anymore. I just ignore them, until I can’t anymore.” Kazu swallowed thickly, leaning forward again and running a hand through his still, thoroughly damp hair. “I don’t want to keep hiding my real feelings, it's just that each time I get even slightly uncomfortable, it's easier to just put the mask back on. I can’t help it, and that’s terrifying, ya know. I want the others to know when I’m stressed or upset, its not like I want to keep hiding it from them, but it never seems like the right time to let the facade fall. They're so used to me being happy, that I don't think they understand how much of it is fake. What happens when I let everything out, and they realize that I've been lying to them? Will they even be able to stand me, as I am now? They’re friends with the energetic, fun-loving Kazunari Miyoshi, not me. I don’t know if any of them have ever even met this side of me, I'm hardly even the same person. I really don’t want to ruin this place, I really really love it here. I’m happier living here than I've ever been in my life, I don’t know what I'd do if everything fell apart...” Kazu trailed off.

“I don’t think anything is going to fall apart, Kazu. Things’ll change a bunch, but nothing will be ruined. You don’t even need to do anything more than just explain this to your troupe. Even if they don’t get it at first, they’ll do everything they’re capable of to help you, I just know it. Also, I think that you’re more likely to push them away continuing on as you are, than you are if you just tried to explain.” “You don’t have to try and handle this all by yourself. Please, try and explain this to them. Trust me when I say that you’ll feel better afterwards.”

“You really think it’ll turn out alright?”

“I know it will.”

Kazunari gave a breathy chuckle. “How can you be so sure?”

Taichi smiled wanly and thought about earlier that evening...

“’The hell? How can you even say that?! You really expect me to just go back to the dorm when Kazunari is out here somewhere, all by himself! If we don't find him soon, who knows what’ll happen! Who know’s what’s already happened? He could have been mugged in an alley somewhere by now, and we’d have no idea!”

“Tenma...”

“I’m not going back.”

“Tenma, please stop and listen for a second. Everyone is exhausted, we aren’t going to make any progress like this. If we sleep for even an hour or two and get back to it, we’re more likely to find him, ok?”

“There’s nothing ‘ok’ about any of this!”

“Alright, maybe ‘ok’ wasn’t the right word for this situation, but Tenma...” The director leaned in to whisper something into Tenma’s ear. Immediately the teen star glanced over his shoulder and saw the state of his troupe mates and his stiff angered posture melted. Tenma silently nodded and sighed.

“I really fucked up this whole ‘troupe leader’ thing, didn’t I?”

“Kazu, your entire troupe is convinced that they've failed you in some way or another, especially Tenma-kun. He was so upset earlier that he actually started yelling at the director, like a real argument and not his usual antics. They want to help you more than anything else, and the entire company feels the same way. This isn’t because they want they want you to go back to how you were, its because you’re in pain and they want to help you. Whether that means that you stop putting on that mask entirely, or just start by learning not to rely on it too much, I know they'll be willing to support you no matter what you decide to do, so long as you’re beginning to get better.”

“I’m here too, if you ever want to talk to somebody who gets it a little better. It's hard being yourself, and it's easy to hide so you won't get hurt when someone rejects you. I get that, Kazu, and I do it too sometimes. So, if you need to talk to someone outside of your Troupe, and maybe even get advice on how to make them understand, I’m here too.”

“Kazu, you’ve got so many people waiting for you at home who want to help you, all you have to do is open up and let them. Try and help them understand, and let them do the rest. That’s all you can do, and I guarantee you, that nobody will be upset if you admit that you’re only human, that you can't be happy all the time. Nobody in the troupe has ever expected that of you, even if they’ve gotten used to your antics, they won't judge you for the fact that you can’t keep them up. The only thing, that you have to decide to do for them to accept you as you are, is to explain this to them. That’s all, and nobody can take that first step other than you.” Taichi said seriously.

“I also happen to know how hard it is to take that first step, by yourself. I had Omi to help me along, he pushed me to tell the others what I’d done, even when I was convinced they could never forgive me, and even that I didn't deserve to be forgiven. He’s the one that helped me take that first step, and I’d like to do that too, for you.” Taichi looked up at the sky which was rapidly changing to a much brighter shade of blue.

“The others will probably wake up again soon, if we head back now, we might catch them before they leave the dorm again. Please, let me take you home, so we can talk to your troupe mates and sort this all out. I know that probably sounds impossible right now, but I know you can do it, and I’ll be right by your side while you do it. So, what do you say?”

Kazunari sighed shakily and nodded, looking absolutely exhausted. “I think I can do it, if it's just my troupe and you I think I can try and explain all of this. I just hope they understand.”

Taichi grinned brightly, feeling a wash of relief rush over him. “Really?! Wow, thank you for trusting me Kazu!” He let out a short bark of laughter. “I’ll be honest, was really floundering there for a while. I didn't know what so say at all, I’m so glad I didn’t make things even worse...” Taichi let out a sigh of relief. “Sorry about that, I ended up just spewing my feelings all over you there....”

“You said all the right things Tai-chan, at least I think so. I feel a lot better, if you'll really be with me I think I can manage this. Even if I still don't know if this’ll turn out alright, I'm going to trust your judgement over mine on this one, because clearly my judgement is all out of wack, today...”. Kazunari paused and shook his head to himself. “Actually my judgment has been out of commission for a while now, I think. The point is, I cant really trust myself right now, so I'm going to trust you, ok?” Kazunari’s voice was a bit shaky, but he put some effort into sounding reassuring for Taichi’s sake.

———————— ok POV switch heh

Taichi blinked and stared blankly at Kazunari for a solid minute before he seemed to gather himself, the words finally having settled in. With a mighty sniff Taichi wiped his eyes and dashed away the tears that hadn’t even had the chance to fall. “Thanks Kazunari, that means a lot. I won’t let you down, I promise.” Taichi grinned brightly, his voice gaining a steelly determination behind it. Taichi then, handed Kazunari the umbrella to hold and turned to pull something from the backpack he’d been carrying. Kazunari stared as Taichi placed a thick plastic poncho on his lap and a large thurmace in his other hand and took the umbrella from Kazunari once again.

“You actually managed to run pretty far away from the dorm, so you should put that poncho on, and there’s hot cocoa that Omi made in there. Even if you don’t want to drink it, just open it and hold it. At least the heat will warm you up a bit.” Taichi said, and he almost sounded like director, the way he was fussing over him.

Kazunari was certain that his cheeks were flushed red, but he was equally sure that was only because he was freezing. It definitely wasn’t because he was embarrassed or anything.

“Hey do you want me to call us a ride? I think that might be better than walking all the way back. Plus, it’ll give them a heads up so nobody leaves to look for us.” Taichi asked, and Kazunari almost immediately shook his head.

“I’m soaked to the bone and I seriously don’t need a lecture from Sakyo for ruining the apoulstry of his car, right now.” Kazunari laughed at his own joke, too bad the joke was too close to the truth. He really didn’t want to soak up and ruin anyone’s car by getting inside it the way he was.

Taichi’s smile wavered, he didn’t laugh. Then he took out his phone and was engrossed in typing for a minute, before Kazu realized what he was doing. He propped himself up against the wall and stood, and was shocked to see how hard it was to do so. His vision almost immediately started blurring and darkening as Kazunari leaned against the wall for support.

“Hey, wait! I can walk I swear, don’t call anybody here, I’m fine!” Kazunari blurted just as he heard the message send.

“Sakyo isn’t the only adult in our troupe with a car, you know.” Taichi replied, a little softly. Then, he nervously tapped his foot for a moment before he made eye contact with Kazu again, and spoke. “You said that you were going to trust me earlier, didn’t you? You can’t get all the way home like you are now, and unfortunately, I’m not strong enough to carry you all the way back.”

Kazunari blinked, and sighed.

He did ask for this after all.

He however, refused to sit down. He was gonna lean right against that wall until the ride came, whoever they were. That thought didn’t last more than five minutes though. Kazunari blinked furiously to clear the spots from his vision to no avail. Then, sighed in defeat and leaned against the wall to slide back down to the asphalt.

Taichi gave him a concerned look and Kazunari tried to ignore it, it was just then he was saved by the appearance of a vehicle, and almost immediately Kazu recognized it as Itaru’s. The car parked and Itaru opened got out of the car to join them.

Kazunari had to look away, because a part of him still couldn’t stand the wave of guilt when he saw the worry in his gaze. So, he fiddled with the hem of his shirt, like it was the most interesting thing in the world.

“Thanks, Itaru, for coming to pick us up.” Taichi said extra cheerily, though there was a dash of genuine grstitude hidden in there.

“It’s no problem. I’m glad you asked me, the others were already waking up and getting restless. They were almost about to start searching for you again when you texted me.” Itaru said with a wan smile of his own. “So, let’s get you two back to the dorm. Do you need a hand there Kazunari?”

“Nah’ I’m fi-“. Kazunari was about to say when Taichi pulled him up and propped him up.

“Yeah, Kazu, my buddy, nobody is gonna fall for that.”

“Alright, ok!” Kazunari sighed, and said “I’m super woozy and can barely stand up, yes I’d love some help.” He was too tired to keep up with this. Let the others do what they want, he’s taking a nap when he gets in that car.

Kazunari could hear Itaru let out a relieved chuckle, Taichi did the same not long afterward. When did he close his eyes?

“Happy to help, then.” Itaru idly commented as Kazu heard a car door open, he was gently shuffled into what he assumed was the back seat and his head was definitely resting on Taichi’s shoulder.

Someone strapped his seatbelt on, he assumed it was Taichi, and he heard the drivers door open and admit someone as well, probably Itaru getting in.

Kazunari was definitely getting sleepy and the last thing he remembered hearing, he wasn’t even sure he was dreaming yet or not. But the last thing be remembered hearing, was Taichi whisper.

“Sleep well, everything will turn out ok, I promise it will.”

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kookiepredictions · 4 years ago

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Why Jungkook’s future spouse will fall in love with him

Broadly it’s the same as Jungkook’s reasons— the twinflame connection brings them together in a way that she can’t help loving him, even though she might have tried not to. But just so this post is not a reiteration of the previous one, I’ll be more specific.

Most of her life, people saw her as some sort of a trophy partner, and not much effort was made to understand who she really was inside. It’s not so much that the other men mistreated her, it’s just that they didn’t know how to treat her. She has been loved, but only in parts and pieces. Which, when awakening to a new perspective of life and love, didn’t seem like love to her. It seemed too conditional to be love. And it’s not just her own relationships, just relationships in general as she saw around her, whether it be her friends’ or strangers’ never fulfilled her own idea of love or relationships. She saw less of love and more of convenience-based asset-exchange. Deals that were made and broken, instead of promises that should be made and kept. Somewhere along her awakening, she formed this really lofty idealistic concept of love and she was keenly aware that it could be an unrealistic dream. Not only was the “love” unrealistic, the problem that came even before that was, to make that dream a reality, she had to first meet someone who also wanted the same thing in love and relationships. And her previous acquaintances didn’t make her feel hopeful about finding someone like that. She also might be a little headstrong with the type of “I’d rather be alone all my life than end up in a wrong relationship with the wrong man” attitude. It was not that the men were “wrong” per se, it was just that they didn’t have the same mindset as hers which is why even though there might have been other common interests and such, it was never whole/ complete. In a previous relationship or connection, she has had to dim down parts of herself to adjust and adapt in it, because they were in some way, “too much” or straight up “useless” to the other person because they just didn’t know what to do with it. One main example is her spirituality. Twinflames are spiritually inclined right from their childhood, even though they’re mostly not conscious about it. It’s just that they have that aspect, that intuitively guided thought process and behavioural pattern to them. In her previous relationships, this was considered an unnecessary thing, an inconvenience even. She was too “different” for her own good. For those partners it was like, it was enough for her to be an arm candy, why does she have to be so analytical, philosophical and idealistic? As she worked on her self confidence and grew more assertive in life, this was seen as an attractive quality— “finally someone with the face and the brains”— but it was still something most people didn’t know what to do with. This is another reason why dating didn’t appeal to her because it lacked the spiritual depth, and although she didn’t know this was what was missing from her life, she was never satisfied with the outer, surface-level dating activities where there was no soul connection. She was probably in a state of acceptance of “I’m going to die alone” idea lol when she first meets Jungkook.

One thing to mention here is that she was not treated right by her past connections not because it was their fault; the main reason was that she didn’t know how to be treated. She knew what she didn’t want in a relationship but she didn’t know exactly what she wanted. And that’s because she didn’t fully know herself either. Jungkook comes into her life and completely transforms the way she sees herself. He serves as the quintessential twinflame mirror for her and all those hidden parts of herself were revealed to her. With Jungkook, she doesn’t feel like she has to become someone else. Although it happens slowly and gradually, she feels more and more vulnerable with him in a way that she could never be with anyone else before. And in fact, in a way that she didn’t even think would be possible since earlier for her, relationships meant adjusting by partially hiding yourself. With Jungkook she doesn’t feel like she has to do that because somehow for him, ALL of her personality is very appealing to him. He’s just interested in everything about her. She can say what she really wants to say and he is eager to listen to it. None of her parts are useless, everything is attractive to him. He’s her biggest cheerleader lol. She could do the smallest thing and he will hype her up like she won the Nobel or something lol. And it all happens because Jungkook really sees her as she is. It’s that habit of his to dig deeper and deeper. He is SO interested to understand her, it’s a very pleasant surprise to her. He doesn’t judge her only for her outer attributes, he likes her for who she is inside— her thoughts, words, feelings— these are the main reasons why he loves her. He’s not like, “okay this is what you look like, this is what your body looks like, done, I’m in love, I don’t need to know anymore”. It’s not like that. He’s really interested in HER— it’s something she had always wanted but almost given up on. Jungkook just comes in and does the very thing that she expected a true partner to do. And the best part about this is that he doesn’t even have to force himself to do it— it’s just who he naturally is— his natural habit of trying to understand people deeply and then treating them accordingly (also discussed in his Personality reading). This is important because if you forcefully do something, say, to win someone over, but is not a part of your natural personality, it doesn’t last long, and eventually you’ll stop doing it, and then the other person feels like you’ve changed, but you haven’t changed, you just weren’t being true to yourself in the first place. (Relationship tip lol: Be yourself right from the start. Put exactly who you are on the table, and let them decide based upon it. It makes a relationship easier and long lasting).

Jungkook sort of just allows her to be— it’s a comfortable space to be in. It’s like how women in the Victorian era must have felt after they took off their corsets lol. And because of this, she learns to value herself and stand up for who she is and what she wants. Funnily though, this means that she might also sometimes stand up against Jungkook when their principles clash, but that’s not with the intention of causing arguments, it’s just that now she values herself too much to doubt herself, and if the person opposite to her is Jungkook himself, she must still stand up for herself, because that’s what Jungkook and this connection has motivated her to do, whether or not it was intended that way. Jungkook is like the last and most important puzzle piece in her spiritual growth. Whatever she had been experiencing in all those years, she now KNOWS what she was and is experiencing. She can articulate her experiences, feelings and ideas from a very definitive point of awareness and knowledge. He is literally the main reason she goes from being an ordinary girl to a divine feminine who knows what she wants, why she wants it, and how to go after it. So many things are said about DFs’ roles in awakening the DMs, but not enough is said about how much of an impact DMs have over their DFs. DFs can sometimes tend to get caught up in their heads with all the frou frou spiritual stuff, but since DMs lead in the physical world or the 3D, they keep the connection and their DFs grounded and play such an important role in manifesting the connection from the spiritual realm to the physical. They have so much love for their DFs they almost form this cocoon of love around them all the time, which again, like discussed in the previous post, makes the DFs feel like they are not all alone in what they’re doing. Jungkook makes her feel so loved and so beautiful, and it’s even better because she knows that it’s not just in a superficial way, rather for who she is in her entirety. In fact, he could care less about what she has to offer. She’s not naive, definitely not after she has found awareness, she knows exactly why people value her and why they want her in their lives. She might not be perfect but she knows what she brings to the table, and she knows that it’s a lot more than what most people are capable of giving. She doesn’t mind giving, as she believes people are born not to take but to give, but it’s the sense of entitlement and the obligatory responsibility that is pushed upon her that turns her off. Jungkook, being her twinflame, is that one person who doesn’t look at her as that kind of an asset. He’s not perfect lol he has his moments of struggle, but at the core, all he really wants is just a companion who understands him, nothing more nothing less. Instead, while most people would extend this energy of “what can you give to me?” Jungkook extends this energy of “what can I give to you?” It’s like how all of Rapunzel’s value was in her hair, but Eugene cuts it off to protect her because in his eyes, her value was in who she was as a person, and all he ever wanted to do was to love and protect her.

Even with speed bumps and potholes, Jungkook’s idea of love matches with his twinflame’s idea of love. There is a sense of innocence and purity with which he loves her. He hardly questions it and even in his most frustrated, weak moments, when he does question it, he’s not very good at it. He’s so much better at loving lol. He’s a true divine masculine to the divine feminine that she becomes. You know, most people do know what real love is, but when that ego comes in between, most people cave. It takes someone really strong to want to fight their own ego blockages and limitations to make that real, ideal love happen, and Jungkook is definitely one of them. He struggles SO much in the connection, it makes me sad often because it is difficult for anyone, but 22/ 23 is too young an age for a super busy K Pop idol to be in a connection as confusing and intense as this, and he definitely has all the reasons and ways out of it. But I don’t know what ultimately gives him the strength to want to work on this, to not let it go. I know a TF connection is not easy to let go of either, and I know he’s wanted out of it, and has tried often, as has his DF, but I just had to say it because we see him smiling for the press and photo ops and it’s just sometimes so hard to believe that that same person is going through all of this. Although, I would say that he does make it harder for himself due to his own stubbornness but again, that’s a post for another day :)

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mikauzoran · 4 years ago

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Lady Noir/Adrienette: Save Yourself (I’ll Help You): Chapter Two

Read it on AO3: Save Yourself (I’ll Help You): Chapter Two: Self-Help

At some point three years prior, before Adrien became cognizant of his crush on Marinette, he had surreptitiously begun to pay close attention to her. These years of reconnaissance allowed him to quickly pick up on the fact that something was up with his charming friend that Monday at school.

She was fidgety and distracted, obviously preoccupied by something.

Alya and some of the other girls noted her particularly odd behavior, but, when asked what was wrong, Marinette politely waved away their concerns and made excuses.

Adrien let it go that first day. He knew she had a lot on her plate with all of her extracurricular responsibilities. Marinette was rivaled only by Ladybug in her jam-packed schedule and need of multitasking.

When she was noticeably agitated the second day in a row, Adrien caught her as they were packing up to move classrooms, resting a hand on her forearm and giving her a confidence-inspiring smile.

“Hey. You’ve seemed really stressed out the past two days. If there’s anything I can do to help, let me know. Even if you just need to vent, I’m here for you, okay?”

She blinked, blushed, and looked away, smiling weakly. “Thanks, Adrien. I really appreciate the offer. I’m okay, though.”

His own smile faltered slightly because she obviously was not okay, but…if she didn’t want to confide in him, it wasn’t like he could force her.

He nodded, turned up the wattage on his grin, and removed his hand from her forearm. “Well…let me know if you ever change your mind.”

She nodded, returned the smile with one even more fake than his own, and quickly finished packing her books, hurrying out the door as fast as she could without appearing to be fleeing.

On the third day of watching the woman he loved in obvious distress, Adrien could no longer stand by and do nothing.

He packed up quickly and waited for her outside the locker room after school, and when she came out with Alya, he flagged her down, asking if she were headed home.

“May I walk you there?” he inquired, shooting Alya a quick, meaningful look.

Alya promptly remembered that she’d forgotten a notebook she needed back in her locker, literally pushing Marinette towards Adrien as she beat a hasty retreat.

Quick of reflexes, Adrien deftly stopped Marinette’s fall and helped her get steady on her feet.

“I’m going to kill Alya,” she seethed, straightening her jarred purse and backpack as they nearly slipped off her shoulders.

“Forgive her,” Adrien chuckled. “She and Nino have this scheme about setting us up with each other so that the four of us can double date. Goodness knows I need all the help I can get to make you fall for me. Alya is doing God’s work.”

Marinette rolled her eyes, glaring petulantly at her friend’s retreating back as Alya disappeared into the locker room. “Goodness also knows that I don’t need help falling flat on my face, so I think I can do without Alya shoving me.”

“Fair,” Adrien allowed, holding out a hand. “May I carry something?”

Marinette shook her head, hugging her sketchpad closer to her chest reflexively. “No, thanks. I’ve got it,” she assured, starting to head for home.

In the back of her mind, she worried about coming off as rude, but the last thing she needed was for Adrien to carry her books and somehow see the endless doodles she’d been doing of Chat Noir all week as she fretted ceaselessly about him.

Slightly dejected, Adrien slipped his hands into his pockets and followed after her, regretting her brisk pace, fearing it wouldn’t give them much time to talk.

“So…” He cleared his throat as they made their way down the school steps.

She looked back at him and nearly tripped to her death.

Luckily, he caught her by the arms, keeping her from nosediving into the concrete.

Unfortunately, her books and notebooks went flying as she flailed in the seconds before he steadied her.

Once he was sure she wasn’t going to fall, Adrien bent down to gather up her things, only to be stopped as she gasped, “Don’t look!” and rushed to retrieve them herself.

“Sorry,” she added when she came to her senses. “Just…private stuff. I don’t…” She paused to take a deep breath and blow it out slowly. “Sorry I’m being such a spazz today. I have a lot on my mind.”

“Is it anything I could help with?” he offered, holding out a hand to assist her back to her feet.

She shook her head, getting up on her own. “I’ll be fine. Thank you, though.”

He bit the inside of his cheek, debating whether or not to let it go.

“…I’m really worried about you,” he confessed after a moment, unable to hold it in.

She stopped mid-step, turning to face him with a puzzled expression. “…You are?”

“Yeah,” he replied in a hushed tone. “Seriously worried. You’ve been really off all week. I’m not trying to force you to talk to me if you don’t feel comfortable doing so, but…I just want you to be okay, and I don’t think you are, and I’m feeling kind of helpless, so…”

He almost felt bad for forcing her hand, but it was getting to the point where he was worried about Marinette getting akumatized, and that was no good for anyone because how was he supposed to fight against the girl he adored if worst came to worst?

He couldn’t…so he crossed his fingers and hoped he’d be forgiven for being slightly manipulative.

“I’m concerned about getting akumatized over worrying about you,” he told her with a grimace.

Her eyes flew wide in alarm before fluttering rapidly in a series of astonished blinks.

“And, if that happens, I’m scared my akumatized self will come after you because you’re technically the source of my negative emotions, and then you’ll be caught up in things,” he elaborated, “and I really don’t want that. The last thing I want to do is add to your stress, so…”

He worried his bottom lip between his teeth and gave her a pleading look. “Sorry, but…isn’t there anything I can do to help? I’m not asking you to talk to me about your problems, but if there were some way I could feel like I wasn’t so powerless to help you…”

He watched as her surprise crumpled up like a note passed during class into a troubled, thoughtful expression.

“…Sorry for being such a pain. I don’t want to cause problems,” he added earnestly, dropping the act and retreating one step at a time. “Sorry. Forget I said anything, but if you do want to talk, know that I’m always here for you.”

He turned to go, but she caught him, fingers wrapping around his forearm, gripping, holding him in place.

“…Wait,” she called softly, a weary resignation in her voice.

He arched an eyebrow questioningly and waited for her to continue.

She sighed and tipped her head, motioning for him to come with her. “Walk with me a bit?”

“Sure,” he easily agreed and followed as she led him across the street and then past her house to the park next door.

They completed one lap around the square, Marinette deep in thought the whole time. Then, she went and took a seat on one of the park benches, and he sat beside her, waiting patiently for her to give some kind of cue.

She inhaled deeply and, gazing down intently at her shoes all the while, finally spoke. “So…there’s this guy.”

Adrien stiffened, his heart screeching to a halt as his mind called up helpful memories of all the times Ladybug had told him about her mystery boy.

Why was there always some other guy? Adrien wondered bitterly but then mentally slapped himself because of course there were guys in the lives of smart, talented, beautiful women like Marinette and Ladybug.

“A friend,” Marinette clarified. “A really close friend, and I’m worried sick about him,” she sighed heavily, shaking her head, at a loss as to what to do.

Adrien relaxed slightly at the friendship label but didn’t let his guard down as she continued.

“He’s having some trouble with mental health and his family relationships, and I think he’s really depressed.” She looked up from her feet to meet Adrien’s gaze, and it hurt his heart to see the glistening tears blurring her vision. “I’m scared, Adrien, and I feel really useless because there’s nothing I can do to help him.

“It’s complicated,” she explained softly, looking away as if it would hide her guilt as shame turned her cheeks pink. “I can’t be there for him the way a friend should, so…I guess I’m feeling for him what you’re feeling for me. I’ve been agonizing over this since Saturday night, and I don’t know what to do. I know that there’s nothing to do. I just wish I could make it all okay for him.”

She lifted her head once more as she vehemently informed, “Adrien, he’s one of the sweetest, best people I know, and he deserves better than what he’s stuck with. I wish there was something I could do so that he wouldn’t have to struggle so much. He shouldn’t have to.”

Adrien nodded, tentatively reaching out to place a comforting hand on her shoulder. “You’re such a good friend, Marinette. I wish someone would worry about me like that,” he chuckled, but the manufactured mirth didn’t quite make it into his voice. “He’s really lucky. It sounds like you care about your friend a lot.”

She smiled wretchedly, giving a sad little nod as she admitted, “I love him.”

It felt like getting hit with an icy blast of winter air or walking outside without a coat, shocking his system.

His hand froze on her arm.

It took a minute for him to form words, and, when he did, they came out stilted and awkward, betraying his distraction. “Oh. Wow. Uh… That’s… He’s really lucky.”

Marinette tipped her head to the side, frowning in concern. “Is everything all right, Adrien?”

“Sorry.” He forced a smile, cheeks stinging as he blushed. “Ignore me. I was just a little surprised because I think this is the first I’ve heard about you having your eye on someone. I mean, it’s only natural that you would, but…”

His hand went up reflexively to rub at the back of his neck, and he shook his head, trying to clear away his muddled thoughts. He was supposed to be helping her feel better, not having a pity party for himself.

“Sorry,” he repeated softly, sheepishly. “I’m just kind of flustered…and more than a little bit jealous,” he added honestly.

Marinette’s mouth dropped open, and she leaned in to stare at him in shock. “W-Wait. What? Like…what?”

“I thought I was pretty obvious,” Adrien laughed openly at himself, hoping to keep the atmosphere light so that she wouldn’t see his heart breaking. “You really didn’t know I have feelings for you?”

Slowly, she began to shake her head from side to side, speechless in her astonishment as she tried to determine whether or not she was dreaming this entire scenario up.

“Marinette,” he chuckled more genuinely, his voice warm and affectionate. “You’re amazing. Any guy who didn’t fall in love with you would have to be a total idiot.”

She gripped the bench seat to keep herself from tipping over and falling flat in the dirt.

Her head was spinning. How could this be happening? Adrien loved her?

Impossible.

And yet…he was looking at her with such a fond, soft expression in his eyes. It was just like the looks Chat Noir often gave Ladybug, so… Maybe it was real.

Her lips parted to respond, to confess her own feelings, but Adrien cut her off.

His eyes widened in alarm, and he gave a start, jolting back and putting up his hands in defence. “…Oh, but, I mean, I totally support you! With this guy. If he’s the one you love…. I support you,” he rushed to assure.

Marinette blinked, mentally reeling from the whiplash.

Did he love her or not? She wasn’t entirely sure now, if he weren’t willing to fight for her. His affections couldn’t be that strong if he was okay with giving up so easily.

“More than anything, I’m your friend, so I don’t want my feelings for you to get in the way of that or make things weird between us,” he explained, desperate for her to understand. “So, if you have to pretend that I never said anything, that’s totally fine. I support you. Whatever makes you happy is the most important thing.”

She had to pause to consider before responding. Her thoughts were so twisted up like a ball of writhing serpents battling to consume one another.

“Thank you, Adrien. That’s so sweet, and it’s seriously not a problem,” she promised, reaching out and placing a hand on his forearm. “We’re fine. Everything’s fine…. Honestly, there’s nothing for you to support. Things aren’t going to work between me and my friend, so…thank you, but nothing’s going to happen between us.”

Adrien’s eyebrows gradually pulled together into a V of concern. “Is it…because of his mental health situation?”

Marinette recoiled, staring at him in stupefaction. “What? No! No, of course not! Nothing like that. He’s amazing, and I’d be more than willing to stay by his side and support him through his struggles. He’s worth putting in the hard work for.”

Adrien’s stomach stopped clenching, and a faint hope welled up in his chest. If things weren’t going to work out between Marinette and this other guy, maybe Adrien still had a chance. Maybe she could see past Adrien’s struggles and still care for him too.

“So…what exactly is the problem, if you don’t mind me asking?” he pressed gently, chewing nervously at the inside of his lip.

She looked away, frowning down at her knees. “It’s…complicated.”

Adrien arched an eyebrow. “Is he gay?”

It was the only reason Adrien could come up with why a guy wouldn’t want to overcome all obstacles to be with Marinette.

Marinette chuckled softly, shaking her head. “No. He’s bi, so…”

She looked back up at him, scrutinizing his face, evaluating his trustworthiness. “…I’m going to tell you a secret.”

He scooted in closer, nodding that he was ready. “I won’t tell a soul.”

She glanced around, scanning the area to make sure they wouldn’t be overheard before she lowered her voice, whispering, “It’s Chat Noir.”

Adrien blinked slowly, uncomprehendingly. The words meant nothing to him.

Seeing his confusion, Marinette elaborated, her cheeks turning cherry blossom pink as she confessed, “My friend, the guy I’m in love with…it’s Chat Noir.”

Adrien’s brain crashed, and it took him a good ten seconds to reboot.

His initial inclination was to laugh hysterically because finally his love was requited, and he couldn’t have asked for a better romantic partner than Marinette Dupain-Cheng.

His mind next trotted off to construct a detailed plan of all the ways he was going to make her happy and spoil her rotten.

It then occurred to him that he needed to tell her his identity, but then he decided to table that idea because Ladybug would be furious, and he wasn’t sure how Marinette would react.

He also wasn’t so sure that this was the best time to reveal his identity because Marinette was convinced that things wouldn’t work between them. She was also currently upset…because of him.

“You’ve been worried all week because of Chat Noir?” Adrien breathed as his brain came back online.

She nodded meekly. “I…Yes. He’s having a rough time, and I’m worried that there’s nothing I can do to help him. I’m not doing a very good job as his friend.”

Adrien rolled his eyes, wrapping his arms around Marinette and pulling her into a fierce hug.

“You’re doing amazing,” he whispered into her hair, wishing he could express how much it meant to him, knowing that her skylight door was always open when he needed a safe space to escape from his life.

He may not have confided in her before about how bad things were because he was afraid of burdening her and scaring her away, but all the times when she’d allowed him to hang out on her balcony or in her room, all the times she and her parents had strong-armed him into making dinner and eating with them once they’d found out he ate alone most meals, all the times she’d saved pastries for him and Plagg…

Chat Noir might not have let Marinette see how dark it was inside of his mind, but she’d always been there to help right when he needed her. She’d gotten him through many tough times, even if she’d never known it.

He pulled back to look her intently in the eyes. “Marinette, I’ve seen you two together before, and Chat Noir is crazy about you. Trust me. I can tell. If you love him and he loves you, why can’t you two be together?”

“Adrien, he’s a superhero,” Marinette snorted, rolling her eyes as if the problem were obvious.

“So?” he scoffed right back. “You don’t think you’re good enough for a superhero or something? Marinette, Chat Noir is the one not good enough for you. Stop being humble and date him already.”

“I’m not being humble,” she returned saucily. “I’m being practical. I can’t date a guy whose identity I don’t know.”

“Then let him reveal his identity to you,” Adrien suggested matter-of-factly. “You’re making this more complicated than it needs to be.”

“I am not,” she protested, crossing her arms indignantly. “It’s too dangerous for me to know his identity.”

“How so?” he argued. “All you have to do is just not tell anyone that you know. Don’t get caught kissing Chat Noir, and no one will be the wiser. No one’s going to think twice if you start dating his civilian self.”

She pursed her lips, trying not to see his point. “What if I get caught up in an akuma attack and get brainwashed into revealing his secrets?”

“Chat Noir has been mind-controlled countless times, and he hasn’t given away his secret identity yet,” Adrien continued to stack solid argument on top of solid argument. “If you don’t tell anyone you know who Chat Noir is, Papillon won’t know to come after you. You’re perfectly safe so long as you keep your mouth shut. I think you can manage that, Marinette.”

“What if there’s a truth-telling akuma?” she tried in one last-ditch attempt.

He frowned at her in mildly annoyed disappointment. “Has there ever been a truth-telling akuma? In the past three and a half years?”

She averted her gaze, her lip pushing forward into a pout.

“No. No, there has not,” he answered his own question triumphantly. “See? I’m not going to say it’s perfectly safe for him to reveal himself to you, but the risk is small enough that I feel comfortable with you taking it. Don’t you think he would be worth it?”

“Of course he would be worth it,” she replied in a small, tired whisper. “It’s just…it’s complicated, Adrien.”

“It’s really not as complicated as you’re making it,” he sighed, gently cupping her cheek and tipping her head up to make her look at him. “Marinette, you’re a wonderful person, and you deserve happiness and love. Why won’t you let yourself have this?”

Her lips slowly moved into a self-deprecating smile, and she shook her head sadly. “I’m afraid that I really am a masochist who doesn’t allow herself to have nice things.”

It was like a foggy pane of glass shattered between them at her words, and Adrien flashed back to Ladybug sitting on the roof of Sainte Chapelle saying the same thing Saturday night.

He couldn’t breathe.

“What…did you say?” he choked as the pieces slid together: Ladybug’s insistence that Chat go to Marinette when Ladybug couldn’t be there for him herself. Marinette’s claims that things were complicated between herself and Chat Noir.

She shook her head again. “Nothing. It’s nothing.”

His Lady, his Princess…the same person? Could he be so lucky?

Her brow pinched into a frown as she registered his expression. “Why are you grinning like that?”

“Because I love you,” he chuckled giddily, rendering her utterly speechless.

She found that she literally couldn’t remember how to make her mouth, brain, and vocal cords work in concert to form any kind of reply, so she just sat there, parting and closing her lips like a drowning fish.

“Hey,” he called softly, slipping his hand into hers. “I really need to talk to you. It’s important,” he emphasized. “Could we please head to your house so we can talk undisturbed?”

She tried to speak, but it came out sounding like a collection of gibberish syllables, so, instead, she nodded and got to her feet, leading him back to her house and up the stairs to her room.

He had to let go of her hand in order to file up the narrow staircase, and, by the time they reached the attic, Marinette’s brain was once again semi-functional.

She took a seat on her chaise longue and motioned for him to sit anywhere he liked, urging, “Make yourself comfortable.”

“I’m good standing, thanks,” he assured. “I’m actually feeling kind of jittery, so…do you mind if I pace?”

“Uh…go right ahead,” she encouraged, watching as he did indeed start to walk back and forth across her carpet. “…You said that you needed to talk to me?”

He took a deep breath and let it out as a sigh, “Yeah. Yeah. I did. I do. I…”

He bit his lip, rubbing at the back of his neck as he tried to get his harried thoughts in order. “I’m not sure you want to know, but I feel like I have to tell you. You’re not going to be happy, but this isn’t something I can keep from you.”

He stopped and turned to face her. “Honestly, I’ve kind of been in a dark place lately, Marinette.”

Her eyes rounded, pupils dilating in fear for yet another one of the most precious boys in her life going through a hard time.

“I’ve been feeling pretty down,” he confessed. “I didn’t say anything because I didn’t want to bother anyone or make them worry.”

“Adrien, we’re your friends,” she scolded, fighting back a whirlwind of emotions.

Hurt that he hadn’t trusted her, frustration that he thought so little of himself and how much he meant to them.

“Worrying about one another and supporting each other is what friends do,” she stressed, hands going to her hips. “When you need help or just someone to listen to you vent, you come to us. We will always be there for you.”

His lips quirked into a sheepish smile. “I’m sorry. I know. I just…have self-esteem issues. But I’m coming to you now, so…better late than never?”

Her expression softened, and she pushed herself up, going to him and wrapping him in a loose hug. “Oh, Adrien…you idiot.”

He rested his head against hers, muttering, “I was also afraid to talk to you about it because I was worried about ruining my chances with you. I know I wouldn’t want to deal with me and all of my insecurities and hang-ups. I couldn’t imagine someone as epic as you picking someone like me when you could do so much better.”

“Adrien,” she cooed, pulling back to meet his gaze with an abundance of sympathy and affection. “Don’t…say things like that. There are so many amazing things about you.”

“That’s what Plagg said too,” he chuckled softly.

She blinked, her brain not registering. “Plagg?”

He nodded. “Saturday…I told Ladybug about how lost and alone I’d been feeling, and she told me to come talk to you…so here I am.”

Marinette’s jaw dropped as she struggled to make sense of what she was hearing.

Saturday night, Ladybug had talked to Chat Noir, not Adrien, so…

Her lungs seized, cutting off her breath.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered like a chastened child waiting to be struck. “I know you didn’t want to reveal identities and that’s why you sent me to Marinette instead of trying to help as Ladybug, but…I think the cat’s out of the bag, My Lady.”

To her credit, Marinette did not faint. She would have liked to because, if she were unconscious, she wouldn’t have to deal with reality right away, but she remained in full control of her faculties and, thus, had to attend to the matter at hand in real time.

“I need to sit down,” she announced, heading back over to the chaise to compose herself.

Adrien followed nervously, taking a seat beside her without infringing upon her personal space. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean for this to happen.”

She waved away his words, shaking her head. “No. No. It’s fine. I…This is my fault. I knew you could potentially figure out my identity every time I had Chat Noir over to watch movies or play video games. I knew I was taking a risk.”

She turned to look him in the eye. “If I had the chance to do it all over, I wouldn’t change anything.”

“Oh,” he whispered, dazed as she leaned in and pressed her lips to his cheek, smiling softly.

“I don’t regret anything except not being able to be there for you more,” she added, making his heart swell. “But now we have to sit down and figure out what to do about this catastrophe now that we’re here.”

He arched an eyebrow, echoing, “Catastrophe?”

She nodded. “I mean…you know my identity. We’re in grave danger, Chaton.”

Deep furrows gradually dug their way across his brow. “Are we actually, though?”

She blinked, taken aback.

“Is this really the end-of-the-world scenario you think it is?” he pressed. “Like what I was saying earlier, if we don’t advertise that we know, why should Papillon target Marinette and Adrien more than any other Parisian?”

Marinette opened her mouth to argue her point but then closed it again when she realized that she didn’t have any good rebuttals to make.

“That’s why I’m always so careful when I come over here as Chat Noir. I don’t let myself get spotted coming and going so that I don’t tip anyone off to the fact that you’re important to me and could be used against me,” he explained, scooting in a little closer on the chaise. “If no one knows we know, how are we in danger?”

She pursed her lips and thought hard, trying to come up with a way to refute his logic. “…But what if there’s a truth-telling akuma?” she inquired weakly, knowing the feeble argument wouldn’t hold water.

He cupped her cheek in his hand and swore, “I would literally die before I betrayed you.”

Her heart cracked open at the very thought, and tears started to stream down her face.

“You die too much already,” she whispered, looping her arms around his neck. “I don’t want you to die…. I love you.”

He didn’t protest as she leaned in and pressed a butterfly’s wing beat of a kiss to his lips.

“Okay,” he chuckled, resting his forehead against hers. “No dying. We’ll figure something else out, but it’s going to be okay, Marinette. No matter what, we’ll get through this together.”

“Promise?” she hummed, a gentle smile lifting the corners of her lips.

“Promise,” he affirmed, inching forward to steal a more substantial kiss.

When they broke apart, there was a question in his eyes. “…Me being Adrien doesn’t change the way you feel about me, does it? You said you loved Chat Noir, but…”

A scarlet flare lit up her cheeks and spread across the bridge of her nose as she finally confessed, “You know the mystery boy I’ve been pining after since we were thirteen?”

He quirked an eyebrow. “Yeeeees?”

“His name is Adrien Agreste,” she giggled.

He burst out laughing. “You have horrible taste in men.”

She slapped him playfully on the arm. “You have horrible self-esteem. That’s the real problem here. I only fall for the sweetest, kindest, most thoughtful guys. I have impeccable taste.”

“…You really think so?” he sought to verify, amazed that such a thing could be true, that such a woman could want him.

She nodded, gaze earnest. “You don’t give yourself enough credit, Adrien. We’re going to have to work on changing that.”

“Is this a team effort thing now?” he hummed, delighted by the prospect.

“Absolutely,” she confirmed…but then the air of teasing left her. “…I’ve been really worried about you since Saturday. If there’s anything—anything—I can do for you, please let me know. …What do you think I could do to help?”

He chewed thoughtfully on the inside of his cheek for a moment before answering. “…I don’t know, really. You’ve done so much already for me as Chat Noir just by giving me a warm, safe, place to go when I need to escape. I feel bad asking for more.”

“Don’t,” she urged. “It really is fine, Adrien. Earlier, you said that you wanted me to be okay, didn’t you? That’s how I feel about you too, so don’t ever feel bad for asking.”

Slowly, he began to nod as comprehension dawned upon him. “…Oh….”

She gave him an encouraging smile and squeezed his hand. “Yeah.”

Blushing, he looked down at their joined hands. “Okay. Well…I’ll have to let you know as I think of things, but…I don’t know if there’s a whole lot you can do. I think a lot of being mentally healthy starts and ends with me, so…I think I have to do most of the work myself.”

“But you can still let me know if there’s anything I can do to support you,” she reminded.

He nodded. “Yeah. You’re right. …I will. I think mostly I just need someone to talk to about things.”

“You can talk to me whenever you need to,” she assured. “I mean, I hardly sleep, so you can call or text whenever.”

He frowned at this. “I think maybe we need to reevaluate your self-care behaviors while we’re at it. I’ve always known that Marinette had a crazy hectic schedule full of stress and deadlines, but now that I know you’re juggling a side gig as a superhero on top of everything you do as Marinette, I’m kind of worried.”

She averted her gaze, sticking her lip out in a pout. “I liked it better when we were focusing on you.”

“I’ll bet you did,” he snickered. “Just know that this is a two-way street. I’m here for you too, Marinette.”

She dropped the pout and looked up at him with a soft smile. “Thanks…. I think you should talk to Nino about how you’ve been feeling lately. Maybe Alya too, if you feel comfortable talking to her, but definitely Nino. He’s going to freak.”

Adrien winced. “Yeah…. Yeah, I know. I just don’t want—”

“—Don’t you dare mention being a burden or bothering him,” she warned. “Nino would be insulted. He loves you literally as much as he loves his brother, if not, more.”

“Yeah,” Adrien sighed, sufficiently cowed. “I’ve just been too scared to say anything.”

She hesitated before continuing, “And…you know…maybe we could go see a therapist?”

He raised an eyebrow in surprise at the suggestion. “A therapist?”

She nodded tentatively. “I know I’m awesome, but I’m only seventeen, Adrien. There are a lot of things that I’m completely clueless about. I’ve looked into psychology a little bit to help me deal with akuma victims, but I’m not an expert. I was just thinking that maybe talking to a counselor would be helpful. Maybe they’ll think of things that could help that we would never come up with on our own.”

“That’s true,” he allowed, considering the idea.

“I don’t know,” she sighed. “I just know that there are a lot of times where I think, ‘Man, I wish I had an adult to help me out with this’. Most of the time I’m completely on my own—besides you and the others and Tikki, I mean…. I was just thinking that this is maybe one time where we don’t have to go it alone. Maybe an adult can help.”

“I’ll think about it,” he granted. “It would be hard to see a doctor without my father finding out, and he isn’t going to like this, but…it’s a good idea,” he agreed.

“Good,” she sighed in relief, leaning into a languid, exploratory kiss that Adrien was more than happy to return.

They broke apart a few minutes later with a contented hum and stared dreamily into each other’s eyes.

Suddenly, an idea occurred to Adrien, and he gave a start.

“Stupid question,” he announced hesitantly.

“No such thing,” she assured, wrapping her arms around him more snugly.

“Are we dating now?” he warily inquired. “Sorry. Do I need to ask you out still? I mean, I assume we’re on the same page because we both said that we loved one another, and we’ve been kissing, so one would think that we’re dating, but I just wanted to make sure because I’ve never done this before, and I’m—”

“—Adrien?” she cut him off gently.

He tipped his head to the side. “Yes?”

“Will you go out with me?” she asked so that there would be no doubt in his mind as to what she wanted.

“Yes,” he responded breathlessly, and the joy in his eyes made her heart melt.

“Good,” she chuckled. “For our first date, would you want to have movie night tonight? We could snuggle on the couch and make cookies together.”

He surprised her by saying no.

“That can’t be our first date,” he whined. “It’s not romantic enough. I’ve had our first date planned for years, Princess. There have to be rose petals and candles and mood music. We’re supposed to eat at this amazing restaurant and take ballroom dancing lessons and then have a rooftop picnic as we watch the stars and snuggle. We can’t have a night in as our first date,” he argued.

She stared at him with a deadpan expression, debating whether it would be damaging to their nascent relationship for her to face-palm.

“My boyfriend is a high-maintenance dork,” she sighed.

“Hey,” he pouted, and she could almost see his ears and tail drooping despite the fact that he wasn’t transformed.

“All right,” she relented. “If we don’t call it a date, would you like to hang out and snuggle and watch movies and bake cookies?”

“Definitely,” he easily approved but then thought to add softly, in a slightly hurt tone, “I’m not silly, you know, for wanting my first date with the woman I love to be everything I’ve ever dreamed it would be.”

“No,” she agreed, reaching up to stroke his hair lovingly. “I’m sorry. You’re not. You deserve to have the first date of your dreams. I shouldn’t have scoffed, even if it is a bit more…” She searched for the word, came up with “over the top”, and decided against voicing it. “…more than I had in mind,” she ended conciliatorily.

“I love you, and I want you to have nice things,” she assured, earning herself an affectionate nuzzle from him.

“Thanks,” he whispered. “That means a lot to me.”

She then did something she knew she would later regret as a show of her love for him: “You can plan our first date,” she offered. “Whatever you want it to be. Go wild.”

The way his eyes lit up at her giving him free rein confirmed her fears…yet, the pure joy in his expression made her think that, if a crazy rom-com-cliché-filled date was the price of his happiness, it was well worth it.

The End

#Lady Noir #Adrinette #Adrienette #Miraculous Ladybug #Miraculous Ladybug Fanfiction #Adrien Agreste #Marinette Dupain-Cheng #Chat Noir #Ladybug #Identity Reveal #Fluff #Hurt/Comfort #Friends to Lovers #Love Confession #Talking #Honesty #Mikau's Writings #Save Yourself (I'll Help You)

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lordbloodysoul · 4 years ago

Text

Name:

Rift Doorman

Title:

“The Layer Breaker” – “Usurper” – “Ever Hunger”

Nicknames:

Rifty / Riff Raff / Tele-Broski (Fresh)

Freak of Nature / Parasite / Anomaly Animus (Error Sans)

Paperworm / Layer Breaker / Clown Vomit (Ink)

Age:

[REDACTED]

Height / Weight:

Varies

Soul Type

“Collective Soul”

// - A Collective Soul shows trades of all known Soul Types and is shielded by a thin membrane of Void. It looks like a blank Soul with a black outline, that has a small pitch dot in its center from which a vibration rolls across the surface of the Soul. Those waves appear in different colors and strokes. To those who are very sensible to Soul Energy, the vibration will sound like an endless army of different voices breathing simultaneously in sync. The rhythm changes with Rift’s state of emotion. It has an aroma/flavour that could be described as “Retro and vibrant”. The feeling it would induces is more reminiscent of Allure and vivid Chaos. Like a puzzle started, but left unsolved. With every piece just raining passed fields of endless colors, trapped within a pool of blackness. - //

STATS:

[REDACTED] // It will show the “ : P “ Emoji //

[REDACTED] // It will show the “ >:] “ Emoji //

ATTACK

[REDACTED] // Just spells out “YOLO” in painfully bright colors //

DEFENSE

[REDACTED] // Just spells out “LMAO” in painfully bright colors//

Doorman-Tier:

Tier A—Strength Level is not readable, due to its current activity behavior.

History:

Rift Doorman was born outside a Universe of the Undertale Multiverse. Its behavior is unusual compared to other Doorman. Rift traverses the Layers of the Timelines in search of something, but without a Universe to akin to, both its Power and Ambition were altered in a dangerous manner. Throughout its travels, this Doorman has eaten itself through various Timelines and Multiverses. However, these places didn’t just disappear, like usually when things are being destroyed through Outcodes or beings from the Anti-Void. They stay mostly intact. Broken like shattered glass, but still existing. Each piece would then connect with another part. A puzzle, that was willingly done wrong, with Timelines and places in Space just overlapping in chaotic patterns. Strings missing, but not forgotten, rules shifted, players removed and entire areas shifted incoherently.

When Rift gained conscious it felt nothing. Devoid of anything, it just drifted. This state changed when it fell into a Genocide Timeline by accident. Within it, Rift faced the Fallen Human in the Judgment Hall together with Sans. As it wasn’t able to feel pain, watching Sans Dust became its first experience with Death. It amused it. Thus it smashed the human child. Seeing as the child’s death was different from Sans’s, curiosity began building up. More so as Sans returned from the dead when the Timeline reset. The battle broke apart, literally, when Rift tried mimicking voices and speech patterns, causing a ear ripping shriek that splintered the very fabric and Layers of the Universe it was visiting. Sans, slain once more begged the creature to stop the child’s madness. Still incapable of understanding why, it understood that this Fallen Human had caused the Skeleton grievance. He understood the visualization of agony and hopelessness, but couldn’t comprehend the feeling itself. Amused by the concept of FIGHT and MERCY, they decided to experiment with it in this broken place. Trapping the Human Child in a never-ending loop of Resets they had no control over. Dying as plaything to the anomalous creature. Rift bored itself over the course of 17.589 Resets, ending the Human Child by eating first their upper body and disintegrating their Soul for absorption. This act loaded the Fallen Human’s Timeline Data Layers into its own being, giving it a broader view on what’s been happening. Still not able to comprehend things, however, Rift left the splintered Timeline and returned to the Layers between.

More travels were its answer. Further down its path, this Doorman entered a Rampage, experiencing many Emotions from interacting with various worlds in different ways. However, it couldn’t feel them at all. It understood. It could see them. Could comprehend what actions would lead to what reaction, but not why it was necessary. Hollow. It was hollow. Like a Black Hole. Just ripping everything apart and consuming it, but nothing could look back or return it. Within it grew a terrible Hunger, which it satisfied by devouring various portions of the visited Timelines and Multiverses. Places, Sections, Memories, People. All fell to its strife to understand. To engage. To be part of something. It began building a sort of pocket dimension in the Layers between the Multiverse, where it gathered things from various Timelines that kept intriguing it. In one already destroyed Universe, Rift recovered a monitor of round shape, still functional. It had the shape of a face, much like all the other creatures it met had. Thus it connected with the screen and used it as a makeshift face-mask, ensuring its actual form wouldn’t freak out too many people.

While striding through the Timelines, absorbing information, energy, magic and various other stimuli into its form, Rift discovered that it was possible to READ these Data and use it. Shaping its attacks in combat into Patterns and Styles unlike anything this Multiverse had ever witnessed. But not only that, it began to hunt and kill other Doorman instinctively, absorbing them into its form as well, leaving their Timelines defenseless. Rift became a true threat to many, just through its curiosity and yearning for understanding. It also began leaving pieces of itself behind in various distorted Worlds, hidden from view. Small Homunculi, holding enough Data and energy to reincarnate it. Rift slowly devolved into a Parasite that endangered the delicate balance of the Multiverse. A thorn in the side of both the protectors of the Multiverse as well as the Vanguards of the Anti-Void. As its shattering of Timelines caused multiple Universes to intertwine with one another. Rift became a target for eradication, even though no one knew about its existence yet.

It was during another stride into another Timeline that it encountered the parasitic entity known as “Fresh”. Their interaction was quite different than what it was used to. And something began to stir within it. Rift felt something. Something that was unfamiliar and strong. It played with Fresh, before that one disappeared to safety, as the creature seemingly grew too attached to them. That escape started it all. A chase that both were not prepared for nor understood. Rift’s conscious was completely fixated on Fresh. It didn’t understand why, but knew it was important. For days, weeks and months it kept chasing them. However, the Parasite didn’t need or wants anyone following them, so they kept fleeing and hiding. Despite their best efforts, though, Rift finds them every single time.

[!!!SPOILERS WARNING!!! - for those who wish to Read the FanFiction or wait till I get around to making the Comic, since the LITERATURE SUBMIT on DA doesn’t allow much creative Freedom, so I have to do a lot of Re-Spacing and Editing on those Parts. This Section will spoil some of the Plot in exchange for Character Build - If you don't want that spoiled, please proceed to the APPEARANCE Section - !!!SPOILER WARNING!!!]

Fresh found himself in a skirmish with Error and Ink, as they both tried tracking him down. They misjudged and thought they were responsible for several Holes within the Multiverse. With no secure escape Route, they were forced into battle, holding their own well. Up until the Anti-Void’s Enforcer, C0D35 Doorman, stepped onto the field. His entire presence alone began to erase the Universe he’s chosen as a battleground. Manipulating Space was practically useless against this foe, as one of C0D35 special abilities was to block all types of magics. Before the fight could harm Fresh, however, Rift shattered the Universe into several pieces. It took Fresh with it and delved through several Layers of broken Code, Timelines and hid them in a small Space it had created from the leftover scraps of Multiverses long forgotten. A Null Space of sorts. Due to the strenuous battle with Error and Ink, the body Fresh had chosen was slowly failing. They had to let go of the host body and seek out another. Rift, even though unable to talk and acting more like an excited puppy, willingly helped the Parasite. It took them to another Timeline to gain a new host body. Fresh, unable to understand or comprehend the motivation of this anomalous creature, decided to experiment how far its warped sense of loyalty would go. Curiosity getting the better of them. Since they couldn’t escape from it for long anyway. Thus the duo began their journey to try and understand what this drive was, where it was coming from and what it all meant. But Fresh already has the slight suspicion that something was off with Rift. Something huge was brewing.

Appearance:

Rift Doorman has no corporeal form. It’s a mass of black noise, free floating energy and magic. The almost cloud-like, dense column attached itself to an egg-shaped monitor. A remnant of a long forgotten Timeline. Due to the vapor form of its body, Rift can change its density and size at will, ranging from grasp-less like fog and air to solid and unmovable like a wall of steel and stone. This Doorman is holding its form together through sound wave. The magic and energy flooding its form gives these waves color and form, embracing its shape and fueling every movement of the mass. This special way of mass control makes it possible for Rift to even split itself into multiple smaller versions of itself. The Energy and Magic coursing through its vapor shape glows in various colors, like a swarm of bugs and fireflies. The ones that are mostly present range from neon-pinkish to eye-stinging green lights. The color of the Emoji faces on its screen are similarly bright and colorful, while the biggest mass of the body is a pitch-black buzzing fog.

Rift uses the screen it found as a makeshift face. By sending energy and magic through it, it channels different words and expressive Emojis, which it uses for communication, since it cannot speak. It developed this form of talking, which is accented with Retro musical tunes and sound effects, due to its own lack of actual vocal cords. Rift can only mimic various words through pitching and dipping sounds and tunes.

Underneath the screen is a distorted black orb-shaped head, with a bright, monstrous white jaw and eyes. The magic, energy and sound waves, which course through the body are accentuated here, pulsing through the big eyes that stare empty into the world. As the delight of murder and fighting was presented with a smile by both his first encountered Sans and Fallen Child, Rift has adopted that same expression into its own. Empty of empathy, reason or guilt. Hollow.

Personality:

Rift is a peculiar Doorman. Even though highly intelligent and fast learning, it prefers to act like an excited puppy or curious child. Devoid of any real emotion to drive its actions, it only acts upon what other people think is the “good thing” to do in a situation. Leaving trails of Chaos and destruction in its wake. Rift’s first real emotion was “a sense of joy” which emerged from killing the Fallen Human in their first ever visited Timeline. After loosing that, it was filled with a Hunger to learn more, experience more and discover why it was unable to understand or hold emotions like other beings do. It likes being lout and giddy, causing confusion and messes all around.

Rift learned from its travels that violence is considered bad, thus it only acts upon it when given a cause or being asked of. Through Fresh’s company, it grew found of their way of speaking, censoring and general demeanor, which they try to imitate. Not always successful. Rift lacks empathy and basic moralities. Doing the right things as much as they can, but never getting appreciation, feelings of guilt or delight out of any of its actions.

It is a slight hoarder, liking to collect various things from visited Timelines and just storing them in their own little Null Space.

Likes:

Fresh

Eating

making music through its distorted Retro Voice (which would probably sound much like the music you can hear in the “Just Shapes & Beats” Video Game – example here )

helping people

playing with Fresh

exploring and learning / education

collecting stuff for its Null Space

cuddling and hugs

dancing

Fighting, when allowed to do so

people laughing and smiling

inducing Fear into ‘evil’ people (it doesn’t understand it, but their expressions give it a sense of ‘delight’, which it can’t comprehend)

Dislikes:

pointless violence

swearing

anyone who tries to harm Fresh

disrespectful and rude behavior

the other Parasites spawned from Fresh

seeing other people go through loss, sadness and hopelessness (it doesn’t understand, but it dislikes their expressions during these moments)

Capabilities:

Rift is a special Doorman. Unlike any other it can and can’t do various things that are unlike its species. Since Doorman are shaped by what their Timeline / Universe needs, their abilities will be manifested into something they can use as an exploit to reach their goal. Rift, however, has neither a goal nor a world for that to work. Being born outside the Multiverse, Void and such, beneath the Layers of the In between, corrupted its whole existence. Thus it learned an ability so variable, loose and dangerous, that Rift managed to break its own power limitations. That ability is ADAPTATION. Through it, the anomalous entity can learn anything that it finds. This ability is limited only by its corrupted special skill, ARCHIVE, which extents its own Data Volume by absorbing that of other objects, Worlds and people. Through these two abilities, Rift extended its repertoire of skills by taking those of others into its own. By devouring other Timeline versions of Sans, Papyrus, Undyne, Mettaton, Napstablook and various other monsters, it learned their magics, attack patterns, strengths and weaknesses, accumulating them into its own form and using them against various aggressors along the way. Taking the Souls of the Fallen Children, it enhanced its own Soul Power, HP and influence over various aspects within the Timeline Layers. Even though unable to cause REWRITE or OVERWRITE, its Determination rivals the power output of such abilities, nullifying their affects on its own self. By devouring various Doormen, Rift added their special abilities into its own arsenal. But not only these are something to worry about, since they also absorbed the (apparently) infamous “COLOR PUZZLE”, which appeared in various Timelines. Through absorption of its information, Rift learned to utilize the principle in its own combat patterns, making for, probably, the worst experience of a FIGHT for any genocidal maniac. During a FIGHT Rift delights itself by causing its opponent as much headache and frustration as possible. All its patterns are a mix of things it accumulated from various Timelines, objects and people. The difference to its style is that every pattern follows a rhythm it deliberately switches to cause as much distress as it can. Their own original patterns appears as orbs, bars and string lines, which move in a sort of symphonic flow. It likes to abuse the rules of the infamous “COLOR PUZZLE” into each of their attacks. Goal during these fights are to keep itself busy till its bored. It will reset its opponent back into battle till it can’t get enjoyment out of it anymore. Than the most common outcome is for Rift to grab its foe and devour it (or part of it), just to satisfy its hunger for a bit.

// Attack Patterns for this Character would look like a mix between Undertale and “Just Shapes & Beats Style //

Rift’s voice is a powerful instrument of destruction, as its wavelength and pitch can shatter and fragment entire worlds, when threatened. Most of the time, though its a tool for amusement and distraction as they can’t use it to speak, but make totes rad Retro music and sounds with it.

Due to their body being so fluid, Rift tends to shape-shift a lot. Switching sizes being one of the more common transformations, however, it is capable of turning into practically anything it has a rough understanding off. From people to buildings and even entire landscapes. The greater the scope, thought, the higher the risk of its Soul overloading and damaging it. This skill it uses often to entertain Fresh’s curiosity and help them fight their boredom.

The Doorman is capable of using the Data collected to create completely new Multiverses out of them, which it does by filtering the most intriguing information into its “Null Space”. A collective widespread anomalous space in the Layers in between. Much like the Core Universe, it is a hidden pocket dimension that is unreachable unless you’ve been there once or are aware of its existence. As the Null Space grows, so does Rift’s power, which is connected to it. Would this secluded fragment in the Layers in between be destroyed, the damage to Rift itself would be tremendous. Rift is capable of creating “BACK UP FILES” for itself. So called Homunculi, which it scatters across the various splintered Timelines, hiding them in various objects. Through those Back up Data pieces, killing the Doorman has become nearly impossible. For its adversaries it is even unclear if this anomaly can ever truly be completely killed, since normal, widespread magic and fighting abilities are completely wasted on it. However, Rift is not completely invulnerable. All of its outstanding skills require huge amounts of magic, which it needs to store by devouring and absorbing Energy, Magic and Entities from other Timelines. Starvation is a realistic issue to it, since their moral compass started to change with the appearance of Fresh. Survival becoming an “optional goal” to its primary instinct fixating on the Parasite and its well-being. Rift can be harmed by beings from the Anti-Void as well as Ink, which is why it tries to stay hundreds of paces away from them. Especially C0D35, as his ability, ANNIHILATION, exceeds its coded protection by a margin. When Rift’s Soul reaches critical its body becomes fully corporeal and eats at its own mass till burn-out. The energy and magic from its body will slowly dissolve the very fabric of Reality, Time and Space as it goes on, till everything just becomes absolute Chaos. This meltdown can cause any nearby organism to be entrapped in a cascade of pain and maddening delirium, slowly eating at their very existence. It would cause an unseen apocalypse of shier Madness, but also cause the very Death of Rift, if the burn-out isn’t stopped.

Relations:

Rift has no great attachment to anyone besides Fresh. And even that “affection” is a level of understanding it can’t comprehend. For it, its something that it was born for, but doesn’t know why or what it is supposed to do with it. Finding the answer to this riddle is the only ‘purpose’ it got and after wandering aimless for so long, it decided not to let go of it till it knows.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Trivia:

The first word Rift ever spoke was “YOLO”, when it read the glasses of Fresh at their first meeting.

There is a Momma CQ version of Rift.

Kid!Rift entire backstory is goign to make people wanna stab me to death. I am sure of that.

Rift’s musical Battle Patterns are inspired by the game “Just Shapes and Beats”

Yes, I am aware that I messed up the Color Patterns of both of my Fresh Designs there. They were both drawn separately before placed in the same picture together. It has bugged me to no end!

Yes, there will be a Momma CQ version of this one coming (probably soon, since I don’t want to loose my shin. It’s not worth making Rifty mad)

Fresh Sans belongs to @loverofpiggies

--------------

#Rift #Doorman #LordBloodySoul #Horrorpuppets #Darktale #Undertale #Underfresh #Fresh #Sans

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princeasimdiya12 · 5 years ago

Text

Hello! I’m sorry this took very long :[[[[. It took long because I actually write it only when an inspo comes in so I stop writing the fic from time to time! But I hope you like it and I’m sorry if I won’t pass your expectation 💓💓

The Huntsman and the Green Maiden (ToshInko Snow White AU)

When Toshinori told his self that he needed to work to save enough money, he didn’t expect it to be an assasination mission.

“It’s not an assasination mission,” the Evil Queen clarifies as soon as she sees Toshi’s skeptical face, “I just want you to get rid of her, that’s all.”

“It is…” Toshi spoke at the back of his head but chose to kept his mouth shut anyway.

“Why do you want to get rid of this…maiden badly?” Toshi asks as his fingertips play with the rim of his glass the Evil Queen has offered earlier.

The queen stares at the nosy huntsman, her eyebrows flinching slightly as she shrugged, “Just because.”

Upon hearing the townsfolk talk about how the palace is in need of skilled huntsmen, Toshi did not hesitate on heading to the queen’s palace. She always had a bad reputation on her people but Toshi, giving her the benefit of the doubt, went anyway and the result? He has proven that she indeed is evil as her name suggests.

Toshi is not clean to begin with. He has killed before with his bare hands. Any form of living as long as it is crucial for his survival. He has long retired from hunting but now that he needs the gold, he’s back from the start and somehow, he despises it.

“Will you take it, huntsman?” The Evil Queen says in a modulated voice that implies intimidation and dominance.

Toshi’s sunken eyes blinked once before exhaling heavily, “Yes.”

An impressed grin creeps in to the Queen’s lips, satisfied by the huntsman’s response, “Excellent. I want the job done in three weeks. The Magic Mirror says she hides in the magical forest, struggling to survive as of. I want you to find her and finish her,” she instructs with her voice laced with amusement.

“But I don’t know her face…” Toshi mutters.

“Oh, you will know once you see her,” now the Evil Queen sounds sarcastic as she clicked her tongue, “She’s the fairest maiden of them all, after all. Also, it’s hard for her not to stand out with her green hair.”

Ar first, you didn’t want to believe the Evil Queen. A person with green hair? Ridiculous. A maiden who hides in the middle of a magic forest? More ridiculous.

----

Huntsmen and adventurers try to avoid the magic forest as much as possible. As its name suggests, unknown forces of magic lurk around its trees. Stories of people who never returned from the forest increase from time to time and this sends shivers all throughout Toshi’s spine.

He’s never tried on going inside the forest himself. He’s never been in a situation wherein he needs to go.

“It’s not as eerie as the rumors make it sound…” Toshi thoughts to his self as he passes through thick roots of an old tree.

“Not bad…” Toshi rests after walking for hours, deciding to settle for a while under the shade of an enormous tree, wiping the sweat off of his forehead.

The rumors about the magic must be a bluff. He’s been walking on its domain for a while and so far? So good. No weird creatures suddenly appearing before him or whatsoever.

That’s what he thought.

Before he knew it, a striking pain hits his nape. He failed on reaching for his neck as his vision suddenly spins, confusing him. He tries to stand up, attempting to escape the unknown force that has attacked him but he fails once again as he falls to the ground, with his head hitting first.

He groans, slowly fluttering his eyes as he hallucinates of hearing laughter of children. Toshi tries to crawl but goes in to a halt when the illusion of laughter he heard goes louder and louder.

“Hell yeah! Die, you scum!”

“Wait, Kacchan!”

He couldn’t even distinguish if it’s his mind playing tricks with him or he actually hear children’s voices near him. Toshi then figures out it was the latter when he groans as a fistful of his hair gets pulled up.

“I WIN!” A blonde child literally speaks in front of Toshi’s face, making him close his eyes as droplets of his…Toshi would rather not know what it is splattered in to his face.

“NO ONE SURVIVES MY BOMB KILLING DART!” The blond child screams in a very chaotic manner Toshi couldn’t understand what the grinning child was trying to say.

“K-Kacchan! You’re not supposed to hurt people!” Another child with a frightened boy goes near this ‘Kacchan’. His green hair exploding all over as his round eyes glistened with tears.

“Huh? Don’t boss me around, dumb Deku!” Kacchan spats angrily as he lets go of Toshi’s hair.

Groaning, Toshi-who has recovered from the dizziness and the pain from his nape at this point-sits as he looks at the children in front of him.

“Bu-But, Kacchan-”

“What?! You want to die, huh?!” The aggressive Kacchan retorted as he flicks this Deku’s forehead, making the latter wince and the tears stream on his face.

“Kacchan!” He attempts on growling only to sound like a whine. Ignoring his friend, Deku glances at bewildered Toshi.

“Hello, Sir, are you lost?” He asks Toshi amidst his tears and his blushing forehead.

“DEKU, DON’T IGNORE ME, YOU-”

“No, I’m actually looking for someone,” Toshi groaned after inhaling, “Are you two from this forest?”

“OY, DON’T YOU USELESS SCUMS IGNORE ME-”

“We live here,” Deku cheerfully replies as he offers his hand adorned with wornout gloves, “My name is Deku, Sir. And that guy is Kacchan-”

“DON’T CALL ME KACCHAN-”

“It’s your name!” Deku points out before ignoring his comrade once again, looking at Toshi who unexplainably grinning glancing at the children in front of him, “Who are you looking for, Sir?”

Toshi looks away, finding it hard to reveal that he’s looking for the fairest lady, “I’m looking for someone…with green hair…”

Toshi and Deku both fell silent, staring at each other. Toshi then realizes that this Deku literally has green hair.

Swaying his hands furiously in the air and head shooking, “No…No… it’s not what you think.”

“Are you…” Deku says as he takes a step back, going beside Kacchan once again, his brows furrowed and his eyes wide clearly because of fear, “Are you here to kidnap me?”

“That’s not it!”

“Kacchan! He’s here to kidnap me!”

“I told you, it’s not it-”

“DIE, YOU BASTARD!”

----

That pretty much explains how Toshinori is following the lead of these two forest children as they take him to their home.

He couldn’t help but question if it was a right thing to follow them deeper in to the woods whenever he sees Deku and Kacchan have contradicting directions.

“We turn right!”

“N-No, Kacchan. Turn left before right-”

“ARE YOU SAYING I’M WRONG?”

Toshinori, silent at the back, only stares at the children bickering as they guide him along the misleading trees, telling him stories of their everyday adventures and few of their 'friends’ left behind the cottage.

In all honesty…Toshi couldn’t care less. He’s not very interested with Deku and Kacchan’s adventures, or the rest of their friends. The only reason he’s following these kids is…

“Feeling tired, Sir Toshi?” Deku looks back at him with his eyes beaming, beads of sweat adorning the side of his forehead as he jumps from a huge root, “Don’t worry, we’re almost there! We’ll let Inko heal your wound.”

“Hmph! If he couldn’t handle walks like these, then he doesn’t deserve to see Inko!”

“Kacchan!”

Right. The only reason he is here is for this lady who goes by the name Inko. When Deku invited him to his cottage, he wanted to refuse, finding it an unnecessary detour for his quest. But what caught his interest was that Inko is, according to Kacchan, a badass woman with green hair but is way more beautiful than dumb Deku’s.

Toshi’s speculation could be wrong but he is willing to take the risk. The way Kacchan has described this Inko totally fits the maiden the Evil Queen wants him to find.

“We’re here!” Deku exclaims the moment they see a poorly-made fence out of sticks surrounding a small cottage.

“Oy, stupid idiots!” Kacchan exclaims as he nonchalantly follows the path towards the cottage, “Were here!”

Toshi looks at Kacchan and Deku brisk walking towards the cottage in glee. He looks at the surroundings after. Tall trees surrounded the cottage adorned with different plants that he knew where edible. On the right side is where a well errects surrounded by small wooden chairs and different gardening tools. They basically have everything they need here to survive…

“Deku, Kacchan, welcome back! How was it?”

“Heh! It was boring!”

“It was fun! And Inko, I’m sorry. We weren’t able to get the flowers you requested!”

“Oh, Deku, it’s alright. Don’t cry, please!”

Enchanted by the sweet voice, Toshi took his gaze off the mesmerizing well, looking back at the cottage and with one glance, he immediately knew this was the fair maiden the queen was looking for.

“Bu-But we brought a friend! Toshinori, Sir!”

Not minding Deku’s call, Toshi’s eyes lingers at the woman named Inko. Indeed, she had beautiful green hair now that he sees it exploding with the gentle wind. Her green eyes are wide as she stares at him as if he were a puzzle meant to be answered. Her head slightly wobbling to the side which made Toshi look at her chubby cheeks.

“Deku…” Ah, he hears it again. Her voice sounded quite dreamy as he unconsciously took a step forward.

She knelt to match the children’s height, which was not really necessary given that her height is close with theirs. Her hands dragging Kacchan and Deku slowly towards her back as her curious eyes become wary of his presence.

“Who…who are you?” She asks. It was clear how terrified she was and yet, she remained firm looking at him.

He didn’t really care of how she sees him, honestly. She could be doing anything and he’d stare at her all day, completely mesmerized by her adorable frame.

But Toshi knew it was rude to remain silent especially if a lady has asked you. He clears his throat, hoping his voice is in its best condition even after that long walk, “Uh…I am-”

“That dumb scum is Toshinori and he’s a loser,” Kacchan cuts him off with an annoyed face.

“Kacchan!” Deku exclaims, clearly unimpressed of Kacchan’s indifference, “Inko, don’t listen to Kacchan. That’s Sir Toshinori, a friend! Also, Kacchan hit him in the nape with his slingshot.”

“It’s not a slingshot. It’s Bomb Killing Dart.”

“Oh my!” Now gone was the wary face of Inko. She looks at Kacchan with a horrified look in her face. Her brows pulled together as her hands gently went to his shoulders, “Kacchan, didn’t I tell you we don’t hit friends?”

Kacchan pouts beneath his scowling face, “He’s not a friend. He’s dumb!”

Inko’s brows furrowed deeper with an obvious frown in her lips, “Kacchan…” She speaks in a modulated voice, showing how she’s unimpressed.

Kacchan’s cheeks turns in to red as he becomes flustered, somehow feeling humiliated he is being lectured, “Fine!”

Kacchan looks at Toshinori, back with the disgusted face, “I’m sorry for hitting you with my Bomb Killing Dart.”

Toshinori, not really paying attention to his half-assed apology, gave the child a nod, “It’s alright. I wasn’t hurt.” What a load of bull as he remembers at the back of his mind how distorted he felt for a couple of seconds.

Snapping back in to reality, he stares at Inko in awe as she walks her way towards him. The ends of her skirt rustling against the trimmed grass. Her hair flying all around as she now holds his calloused hands.

“Soft…” Toshi comments at the back of his mind.

“I’m really sorry for what Kacchan did to you, Sir Toshinori!” Inko bows and you noticed how her hair is made stylishly with a small bun.

Toshi, breaking free from getting petrified for a good three seconds, becomes flustered as he registers Inko is holding his hands, “I-its alright! I don’t mind!”

“Thank goodness!” Now Inko stands straight, her face looking relieved with his answer. Her brows are up and a sweet smile creeps in to her lips, her eyes turning in to crescent moons.

A little repetitive but Toshi is in awe again now that Inko is literally only a couple of centimeters away from him. Being this close, he sees how her skin is very fair and how pretty the sunlight reflected in to her beautiful green eyes. Not to mention, her thin lashes casted soft shadows underneath, which made her look so beautiful.

“But we still must treat your wound!” Inko says as she snaps, frowning at you but in a funny manner, “Kacchan’s slingshots can sometimes be too-”

“BOYS, READY!”

Surprised after hearing another voice, Toshi’s gaze passes through Inko, going to the cottage’s doorway. He turns pale as he sees four? No, five children with different hand-made weapons with them, all aimed towards him.

“ATTACK!”

“B-Boys!” Inko screams as Kacchan pulls her away from him, giving clear path for the children, “No!”

----

“Here, Sir Toshi….”

Toshinori looks up at the red haired child who is offering him a plate filled with food they’ve prepared. Toshi couldn’t help but glare at the red head, especially with that annoying smirk. This red head was the one leading the other children earlier.

“Thank you…” He says but his furrowed brows, glaring sunken eyes, and frowned lips says otherwise.

The red head sheepishly chuckles as he blushes while scratching his spiky hair, “We’re sorry for earlier…Kacchan was silently telling us that you were a threat; so we did that…”

Kacchan. He shouldn’t have underestimated that boy. He knew that child was a problem but he didn’t expect him to be this much of a problem.

“And you believed him?”

Toshi now looks at the purple head child with a blank stare in his face, bringing with him a cup filled with water.

“Shinsou…” Red head pouts, cheeks getting redder than it was, “Well, you guys believed in me as well!”

“Because you were persistent and we didn’t really have a choice,” the purple boy in which the red head called as 'Shinsou’ nonchalantly replies as he offers Toshi his cup.

“On behalf of my friends, I apologize for their stupidity,” he respectfully bows.

“Oy, Shinsou, who are you calling dumb?!”

“You and Kacchan.”

“M-Mean! I am not dumb. I am manly! Kacchan will hear of this!” Red head looks at Toshi again. He swears the red child looks like getting drowned with the red tint in his skin.

“M-My name is Kirishima, Sir!” The red head exclaims while bowing once more, “Please excuse me!”

Not waiting for Toshi’s reply, Kirishima vanishes from his sight.

“Please eat until your hearts content, Sir Toshinori…” He looks back at Shinsou who is still standing in front of him.

“I’m…not that hungry,” Toshinori says while looking at his bruises.

With Kirishima on the lead, they mercilessly attacked him with all their might using their hand-made guns, swords, and catapults. Being a huntsmen, fighting would’ve been a piece of cake. BUT it’s a different thing when you fight in front of a beautiful maiden.

Beat from walking and from Kacchan’s…Bomb Killing Dart, plus the children’s ambush, covered with bruises all over his body, of course he’d lose his appetite to eat.

“I don’t really care if you’re full or not,” Shinsou says with an indifferent tone, his eyes wandering around, “But Inko keeps on asking us to check on you. I can’t sleep well if she does that.”

Completely surprised, Toshinori immediately looks for Inko, only to catch her watching him. Both Inko and Toshinori taken aback of how the other caught them staring, they both looked away in synch.

“Thank you…” Toshinori says to Shinsou in a low voice, looking down, trying to conceal the blush in his cheeks.

At that moment, the quest could’ve ended if he killed Inko at that cottage. But there were things he had to consider, like the children. He was certain despite of their small physique, they would not hesitate on protecting Inko as she had become their mother.

----

“We own the cottage,” Shoto, one of the seven children, says in with his eyes looking down, fingers running through the grass as his feet is submerged in to the river, “Then we found Inko.”

“Wounded! And exhausted!” Testutetsu, who is oddly very similar with Kirishima’s physique and appearance-wise, screams in order to catch his attention.

Keeping his hands steady while holding the rod, Toshi looks at Tetsutetsu, “You found her?”

Shoto nods, the reflection of the crystal blue river reflecting on his eyes, “We treated her wounds and she didn’t leave us ever since. We like it, though,” he says with a small smile, “She takes care of us.”

“But there’s one thing that we don’t know about Inko,” Kirishima butts in with Denki, the seventh child, leaning on his back.

“We don’t know where Inko is from or what her life was before being with us,” Denki says, playing with the tips of Kirishima red hair.

“Deku thinks she was a princess…” Denki whispers as if they shouldn’t be heard, “Kacchan doesn’t buy it. He says Inko is a badass lady who rules the drunkards.”

“I don’t think Inko is in to that lifestyle…” Kirishima says with a doubting smile, “I think she is a princess, too!”

“But if she is a princess, why would she wander in to the magic forest?” Shoto asks hypothetically which made Kirishima and Denki shut up.

“What do you think, Toshinori, Sir?” Tetsutetsu asks, looking to Toshinori.

Toshi keeps his eyes glued at his bait, floating in the river, as if trying to avoid their looks. The guilt he has been disregarding for days creeps up into his heart, making him grip his rod tighter, his teeth digging to his flesh.

“I don’t know…” He says with gritted teeth.

He knew he was lying. He could easily get rid of the children if he wishes to. He has killed men and animals that are hundred times stronger than he is. Killing children would’ve been a piece of cake for him.

He knew that he purposely made excuses just for him to disregard the main purpose of his presence at this magical forest: to kill the fairest maiden of them all.

----

Undeniably, Inko is enchanting. But Toshi knew it was not all with the looks or with her mysterious green hair. It was with how kind she was to anything she touches, how gentle her words could be and how she resembled home to anyone.

It is true. Because he himself felt it, especially now as he stares at Inko, patiently waiting for him and the children, Kacchan and Deku’s heads on her lap. Her smile, gleaming brightly as ever as her shoulders raise in joy, waving at them. Nostalgic memories of Toshinori’s younger years flashes before his eyes with the mere exposure under Inko’s warmth.

“It feels like…” Toshi whispers under his breath, slowly taking off the net filled with fishes from his shoulders.

“HOME!” Kirishima, Denki, and Tetsutetsu screams as they run towards their cottage, leaving behind them the bashful Shoto.

“Children!” Inko giggles as Kirishima, Denki, and Tetsutetsu shower her with pepper kisses.

Kacchan and Deku groans as they get disrupted on their sleep, “YOU DUMB IDIOTS!” Kacchan growls, standing with his death glare on.

“K-Kacchan!”

“Ah! We woke Kacchan up!” Kirishima screams.

“RUN!”

“DIE!”

Your eyes trail towards the children who are now running away from Kacchan. Their loud laughter echoing across the terrain as they dance around the grass, bathing under the sun.

“Shoto…”

He looks at Inko who is now caressing Shoto’s arms. Again with that familiar smile in her face. Of all the looks she gave, that was Toshi’s favorite expression.

“Go play with the rest…” She coos using her soft voice, tucking her green hair behind her ear.

Shoto gives a curt nod before running towards the direction of his brothers, leaving Inko and Toshinori alone at the cottage’s doorstep.

Suddenly realizing this fact, Toshi stiffened, heart beat slightly raising as he stops his lips from grinning.

“Toshinori, thank you…”

Baffled, he looks at Inko. Her lips in a smile in between her flushed cheeks.

“For…?” Toshi asks, his brows slightly furrowed.

“For catching fish for us…” She chuckles, slightly scratching her cheek with her small finger, “We don’t really eat fish that much. No one is that excellent in catching fishes, not even Kacchan…” She says in a joking manner.

Toshi couldn’t help it. He smiles as he looks at Inko’s face. Slowly, he sits beside Inko, disregarding the fact that he’s slightly bothered by how close he is to him and how ridiculously small he is next to her. She would definitely fit in to his frame even though he is skinny himself-

Toshinori shook his head, trying to shake away his thoughts. Focus…focus…

“It’s nothing…” Toshi says nonchalantly, his eyes on the children who seem to be playing tag, “I…liked it,” he admitted.

“That’s good…” She comments, her face resting at her palms as she pulls up her knees, “The kids like you…”

Toshi made a face as he remembered how Denki and Kirishami pulled a prank on him on their way home. Not to mention, the way they treated him when they first met.

“I doubt that…” He spatted bitterly.

Inko chuckles, her shoulders slightly shaking along, “That’s not true. They like you. The moment you were able to catch a wild boar, you immediately captivated their hearts. They love meat,” she pointed out with as-a-matter-of-fact-voice.

Giving Inko a side glance, Toshi says, “You really love them, do you?”

Inko nods, “Very. I owe them my life. If it weren’t for them, I might not be here…” She says, the smile in her eyes slowly disappearing.

Toshi couldn’t help but to look away. Somehow, he feels guilty, especially that he knows the reason why she is at this state.

“I…grew up from a…bad place. I was banished from where I lived, you know…” Inko talks despite of Toshi’s silence, “I spent all my life inside the walls of my home and when they asked me to leave, I didn’t know what to do and before I knew it, I found myself wandering the magic forest.”

Toshi glances at Inko again, catching her fingers interlacing playfully from one another. Her eyes clearly in pain as she talks about her past.

“Then I woke up with Kacchan snuggled under my arms,” she laughs, “These seven children brought me to their cottage and before I knew it, I became attached.”

“Understandable,” Toshi nods, “They leave an impression,” he agrees, slowly looking at Inko who looked at him as well.

His blond hair slightly being swayed by the wind, he stares in to her eyes. Hoping he’d find answers to his confusion, of how troubled he is of what he is supposed to do next.

“You leave an impression…” He muttered so softly, not breaking his stare at her. Which made him see how her cheeks flushed with red tint.

“You leave an impression, too…” She says, completely flustered with how her voice went high, “… Toshinori, Sir.”

----

Living with the seven children and the fairest maiden in the middle of the magic forest felt like a bliss. A daydream he always had in his mind whenever he was out to hunt. A place he always envisioned whenever he was sick or was feeling nostalgic in a hot afternoon.

“Inko is good at making pumpkin pie!” Deku exclaims as he dreamily thinks of it, “She makes them so good I always ask for more!”

“You just love eating, Dumb Deku,” Kacchan says in an upset tone as he walks along Shoto, “It’s not that great!”

“Not that great? Quit being a liar, Kacchan. Real men don’t lie!” Kirishima snickers as he brings the smaller net filled with fish, “Plus, you also ask for more with Inko’s food!”

“No, I don’t!”

“Yes, you do!”

“YOU STUPID TURD, I DON’T-”

“Inko?”

The wild bickering of Kacchan and Kirishima went in to a halt upon hearing Shinsou’s surprised voice. Before they all knew it, they have arrived in front of the cottage.

Trailing after Shinsou’s stare, Toshinori looks to the cottage, only to be taken aback to see Inko spilled on the doorstep, barely conscious.

“Inko!” The Kirishima, Kacchan, Deku, Tetsutetsu, and Denki screamed as they dropped the fish and meat they’ve hunted from the forest, running towards the woman who has become their mother figure.

“No…” Toshinori muttered under his breath. Knees wobbling, palms suddenly sweating, and a large amount of hair suddenly caught in his throat. Somehow, an idea flashes in to his head…

“Toshinori, Sir…”

Snapping out from his thoughts, he looked down when a small warmth touches his hands. He sees Shinsou and Shoto, looking up to him, fear evident in their eyes.

Without saying anything, he drags them along, running as fast as he can towards Inko.

He hears the children’s cries as they surrounded the beautiful woman. They loudly screamed her name in the hopes that it would wake her up but to no avail.

Shaking, Toshi lets go of Shoto and Shinsou’s hands as he pulls Inko’s frail body, making her lean towards his lap.

“No…” He muttered, lips shaking as his fingers trail on her unconscious face, “She found her…” He said as realization dawned on him.

The queen…she might have grow impatient and…looked for Inko herself.

“We lost her…” He said, slumped in despair as the world was drowned with the screams of the seven scared boys around him.

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ganondoodle · 1 year ago

Text

some random ideas for the totk rewritten project

krog (korok) seeds

i think i found a way to include krog seeds even if i reintroduced bags for expanding your inventory- what if the krog seeds are redeemed for the amiibo sets and maybe a few new things? that way you are not forced to engage with krog puzzles if you are tired of them and its not essential either, you can choose what armor set you want instead of being "surpised" by the same link hat three times in a row for fighting your way through the depths (like i was lol)

considering im rewriting the krog forest to be like a minidungeon with a unique miniboss and boss AND you start the quest for restoring the master sword there i think that this is acceptable

what if one of the expensive rewards was a krog armor set that includes the mask from the botw DLC but adds two more pieces, its effect could be to turn invisible as the krogs are to most people; considering how they are not invisible to everyone it could still work with important NPCs still seeing you AND you could run through monster camps without them chasing you if you just want to get through without you attacking them- since its expensive you gotta gather alot of krog seeds to buy it meaning it wouldnt make encounters much easier bc you have to fight alot of monsters before being able to afford it anyway and the effect is removed once you attack an enemy .... or maybe once you are spotted you can stand still and the effect restores itself nhfkjdnkjfdk

food + storage

to raise the difficulty a little i thought about bringing bottles back, they are physical items this time with a limited number and are able to store medicine and soup that has no expiration date; personally i like cooking tho so i want to keep it, maybe with the effect of being a bit more limited in number and, while not spoiling completely, it loses some of its effectiveness over time

how you use them im not yet sure, either the same way in inventory (which i think i will go for since i dont want to change it that drastically and with the added balance of limitation i think that is still fine) or on some kind of item wheel you can set yourself like in skyward sword

there are bags you can find as bigger items that will expand your weapon, shield or bow inventory slots, perhaps a small bag gives you one and a big one two slots- it would be a bigger and different reward for exploring or quests and fills the spot for inventory expansion

theres a chest in links house (i thought maybe links house is still links but they built onto it so zelda has a place to stay as well, like a bigger/double house) that can hold armor sets if you dont want to keep carrying all of them around but dont want to sell them either

repairable weapons through zelda

weapons still break but are full weapons again, i found the excuse of them all being useless now through the cataclysm ... somehow for some reason a pretty blatant way for forcing you to fuse stuff bc its literally the only viable thing to do, but i like the idea of inventing new weapons with materials; to balance it out and give you an incentive to help out your friends i figured that at first weapons still break, but in each region is a smith that can teach zelda (who is your companion in this rewrite) how to repair weapons of a certain type (zora, spear, goron, two handed, rito, bows, gerudo, one handed-- perhaps it is a longer quest of idk .. bringing certain weapons to those smith or similar) which she can do anywhere outside combat;

how broken the weapon is determines how much extra material she may need to do it- im still working on it but i got the idea of the status of the weapon being symbolized in three stages, fine, damaged and broken; damaged is the one that needs less material to fix up, broken costs more- a broken one might still occupy an inventory slot but is unusable or very very bad damage wise, you can throw it away either manually or when you try to pick up a new one you can choose if you want to swap it out (just like they did with stuff from chests in totk .. idk why they didnt add that to in game weapons lying on the ground too) or choose to keep it and repair it once you are out of combat

arrow types

i dont like the menuing in totk for the arrows ... it was one of the most frustrating things to deal with (especialyl bc it sorted your inventory too??? when you used the sorting in the quick menu???) so i wanted to change that a little, havign to go into the quick menu everytime for each arrow i find tedious too, so;

there are more arrow types but they are craftable with arrows and materials, you can craft them in bulk out of combat (the typical types from botw -fire,eletric,ice,bombs- but then add those confusion ones, wind, the cloudy shroom thingy, poison .. perhaps a few more if i can think of more but not too mayn to not clutter it again)

enigma stones function

i wanted to change how enigma stones function somewhat, they dont "enhance" the ability of the champion/sage (i still wanna call them chmapions bc thats what they areeeee) it allows them to link an ability of theirs to link without the orginal champion having to be present or dead, the stones come in set of two each and function somewhat like a magic communication between the player and the champion, once you obtain the second piece its embedded into links shiekah arm prosthetic (also something of my rewrite) and allow him to call upon their ability at will through a second selection wheel

ranch ruins

the ranch ruins i wanted to be rebuild (bc thats cool and i thought restoration was a theme? lol) and maybe you help rebuild it proper and as thanks you can put your horses there to roam around all at once when not taken out to ride, not a big gameplay thing but a neat quest with a rebuilding thing of a building we havent seen in its prime and a neat addition of letting you see all your horsies at once :)

(totk rewritten project)

#ganondoodles talks #zelda #totk #ganondoodles rewrites totk #kinda random ideas thrown around but i kinda like this direction #makign it all a little more streamlined while not removing too much of its core #also adressing some issues from botw #while also giving them a little more substance #ngl im actualyl thinking of omitting the building aspect as a whole ........#its impressive for sure but i dont know if this kind of game is truly the best place for that #i hoenstly think all those ideas are both really cool- work well and would have been doable with that time and money nintendo got #i dont want to be too proud of myself though so im open for constructive feedback on what you think about this #(´。＿。｀)

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radramblog · 4 years ago

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Pokemon Quartz

I have a confession to make.

I fucking love Pokemon Quartz.

Okay, context. Pokemon Quartz is an infamous Romhack of Pokemon Ruby, finished in 2006 by a young Spanish developer going by Baro. It was possibly the first completed romhack that completely replaced the entire set of the available 386 Pokemon with a set of newly designed Fakemon, and while lots of the replacements are pretty obvious analogues, there are some pretty interesting designs and the sheer effort required to do this solo as a teenager is something to behold.

(Look at Lileep, it’s a dodo now! I think its cute.)

The hack shows it age pretty well these days, with the sheer development made in GBA hacking especially in the last couple of years obviously showing it up- obviously something like Clover or Radical Red is going to make Quartz look ancient, and limitations in available tools are pretty obvious if you know where to look. The game’s region, Corna, is blatantly just Hoenn with some modified route themes, and its pretty clear that the designs for each Pokemon are limited to the replaced mon’s colour palette (as with Torido above).

(The map is kinda pretty though imo)

Quartz is infamous for a few reasons ultimately linked to the developer’s youth. For one, the dialogue tends to be a mix of poor English and weird humour and plenty of cursing, along with some jokes that don’t really fly these days. (To Baro’s credit, the writing and English does get better as the hack progresses.) The plot is utterly nonsensical as a result of shoehorning the Electric themed Band Ambar as villains into vanilla Ruby’s story, and involving the very 00s teenage idea of CHAOS vs ORDER and the pseudophilosophical musings that go along with it. Also like some of the designs are extremely ugly, to be frank. Lots of people are aware of Babos, the Skitty replacement, but that’s only really scratching the surface- the Llamayama line (aka Numel) and Berchi line (Clamperl) are pretty awful if you ask me.

(ew)

(…sis you are literally standing in a centre)

(hey can we take this from a 10 down to like a 6 or so)

I first encountered Pokemon Quartz as part of a bootleg multi-game cartridge picked up in my time living in Kuala Lumpur. The version of the hack on that cart was either very early or just broken, since none of the doors in Golden Island or the nearby Broke Cave (Dewford Island/Granite Cave) would actually let me in and therefore I couldn’t progress especially far. (I understand there was another broken ROM running around the internet that just had legendaries and Master Balls running around the first few routes, for some reason,). My trying to find a walkthrough or a fix led me to one Let’s Play of the hack by Zorak, which I suspect considering his association with fellow early LPer Chorocojo is the reason a fair few people are aware of Quartz at all. While I absolutely wouldn’t recommend reading that LP these days- its very late 00s, enjoys a certain R-word way too much, and to his credit Zorak has a comment on the archive stating that he considers it “immature and severely unfunny!”, but it was the only way for me to consume the remainder of the game at the time, having not figured out emulators at that point. I could go on for a long time about those early Lets Plays, but I’ll save that for another day.

(Oh also I’m ganking a bunch of the screenshots from that LP since my file is in endgame, cheers mate)

Okay but why do I like this game then? Well, aside from tickling my nostalgia bone something fierce, there’s a lot of cool things in the hack that make it stand out. While the lore behind the main legendary Pokemon is pretty bad and some of their designs are godawful, the Braille puzzles from Ruby have been converted into an entire original runic alphabet and is expanded to be present in the encounter events for Kaomare and Karendi (Kyogre and Jirachi). I had a lot of fun translating all of the script by hand, even if the actual text is a bit edgy. Speaking of Karendi, the game has a very JRPG style item chain sidequest to get to the encounter, which is pretty fun and something that to my recollection hasn’t been seen since. It has some little ideas in the dex that took Game Freak years to try, such as an evolving legendary (Ordkip->Tanord, replacing Latias and Latios) and the hack’s replacement for the Kanto starters having a 4th evolution (replacing the legendary beasts in the dex). The player is actually offered a second starter from the trio replacing the Johto starters late in the game at Muddy Island (Pacifidlog), which while a bit useless at that point is still something that took GF until X and Y to try. (Emerald doesn’t count imo)

(I’d translate the Cornan, but I lost my notes. Find the key yourself, cowards)

I can’t really explain beyond that why I love Quartz so much, but it’s the type of attachment that doesn’t really make sense and can’t really be explained. With that in mind, please believe me when I say never play Pokemon Quartz.

Most of the Pokemon are reskins of the original mon without changing the stats or learnset, and some of the ones that are make zero sense (As an example, the Water starter gets Aeroblast of all things, but only if you overlevel it in the second stage). The 3rd Gym leader’s ace, an overleveled Groundoe (Sandslash), has 4 ground moves, so any Flying type beats it outright, except 2 of those moves are Earthquake and Fissure, so if you don’t have a bird you are S.O.L. . The 4thleader has an absurdly overpowered ace in the form of Freech, one of the few mons to be completely overhauled, being the Milotic equivalent except its Dragon/Ice with overpowering STAB moves and Speed Boost. Basically, the game balance is completely out of whack.

Instead give a look into Pokemon Ultra Quartz (I refuse to type Let’s go Blobbos more than once). Released in 2018 by the developers for the excellent if also problematic Clover, UQ fixes just about every issue with the game’s balance, expands the encounter tables to include many of the Quartz mons that were implemented but unobtainable, and re-enables missing features such as the Battle Tower, while leaving most of the rest of the Quartz experience untouched- in this sense, I’d argue it’s the superior Quartz experience. It does still have issues- the labyrinthine route and cave design is untouched, Blobbos is here but is pretty pointless, and TM availability is as shitty as Quartz (which is the same as vanilla Ruby, but still). It does also add a few events of varying quality- Blobbos is as adorable as ever if a little pointless, the endgame developer battles are neat and decent grinding, and the postgame dungeon added is pretty sick even if the secret boss is… unique? The direct 1:1 import of the Deadly Seven from the infamous Pokemon Snakewood is both unnecessary and obnoxious, so try to keep in mind its origin when suffering through that forced segment of the game.

(My final team- Dotori, Psimouse, Rubygon, Mazalon, Oceadino, Kaosune. Or, Flying/Fighting completely overhauled Cradily, Serene Grace Gardevoir, Split evolution Vibrava, Ghost/Steel Banette, Water/Flying Swampert, and Fire/Dragon Groudon.)

It’s a good game despite this, ok? Give it a shot, experience some Romhack history but not quite as shit as it was in ’06.

Wait shit I forgot to mention how Baro put his name everywh-

#ramble #pokemon #romhack #pokemon quartz

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danetobelieve · 5 years ago

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All In How You Look At It || Orion, Tiaret and Winston

Things had really taken a twist, Winston wasn’t completely sure when everything had become a part of a horror movie, but everything was very dark right now. Not literally. They’d already done that. But in other ways for sure. They hadn’t been able to get Darwin on the phone, on the internet, and so they’d taken Rio, taken the ridiculous amount of research that they had done and put it in their back and then shot out to Darwin’s place. Pulling up outside of their house, Winston stepped out of the car and scratched the bandage that covered their eyelid and closed the door. “Hey, you got everything?” Winston asked with a frown, “I can take a look round the back but it might just be worth … you know literally knocking on the door.”

The eye, the demons, the visions had consumed his days. Orion could barely sleep and hadn’t really wanted to. All he wanted was to read and research and figure out what was going on. He had been surviving on energy drinks and snack cakes and whatever few hours of sleep he got through power naps. Just knowing that the eye was still on their hands and that it could come back to Orion at any moment was enough to give him insomnia. When they got to Darwin’s, Rio crawled from the passenger seat, slinging the book bag over his shoulder that held all of his books and notes. The thing must have been half the weight of Rio himself and hung along his back, forcing Rio’s posture straighter as he walked. Darwin had told him that he could grab some more texts on demons and that was exactly what Rio planned on doing. “Knocking is fine.” Rio agreed with Winston, heading up to the front door and hitting his knuckles against it a few times. “Someone’s inside.” Rio mentioned absent-mindedly, his heightened hearing picking up on footsteps within the home. “Just can’t tell if it’s Darwin or not.”

Tia had spent the better part of her day sleeping. Darwin's apartment was hardly a palace, but it was warm, and clean, and for the moment that was all she needed. Her eyes peeled open at the sound of someone speaking below her window. Rubbing her eyes, she sat up in her bed and groaned at the tightness in her muscles. Were humans ever not in pain? Ignoring it for the moment, she rose to her feet and crossed to the window, peering down at the two people who had interrupted her beauty sleep. She tilted her head and observed them as they knocked on the door of Darwin's shop and waited for him to answer. She wondered, for a moment, if she should stay silent and let them leave on their own accord. No, you have a deal. She rolled her eyes and left the window and took the short trip to the store, taking her sweet time as she strolled to the door. Opening it, she smiled at her new guests. "Has anyone ever told you how rude it is to disturb a lady's beauty sleep?" Tiaret greeted, leaning against the frame of the door. "Darwin isn't here at the moment, I'm afraid. You'll have to visit him some other time. Preferably when I'm awake."

The woman who answered the door was very clearly not Darwin. She really didn’t look to be that much older than Orion or Winston. But she certainly carried herself as if she was much more mature or regal. “Oh uh- Sorry.” Rio answered, scratching at his neck nervously, “I wasn’t aware that anybody lived here with Darwin.” He didn’t know what to do here. Clearly, the woman had no intention of letting them in. If her figure blocking the doorframe hadn’t been evidence enough, her next sentence instructing them to come back later cemented that. But Rio and Winston really needed those books. Rio felt like they could figure this out. Stop whatever was going on. He felt like they were getting so close. Like the picture of a puzzle finally coming together. All they needed were a few more pieces. Just a couple more clues and suddenly everything would click. “Uh actually-” Rio began, surprising himself that he hadn’t just shied away and crept back towards the car in defeat, “Darwin told me I could come by anytime. He has a few books that I am supposed to grab.” Rio tried explaining that to her, hoping she would accept it and leave them be. “I can pull it up on my phone if you need any proof. My name’s Orion. Or Rio. This is my friend Winston. Darwin has been helping us with some research.”

"Don't worry your head, it's a recent development." Tia was a selfish being. It wasn't a fact she disparaged against herself, she thought selfishness to be necessary for survival. When she had made her deal with Darwin to assist him and his friends in their dilemma, it was strictly because he was giving her a place to stay. "So you're Darwin's little friends," The ex-demoness smiled, looking up and down at the two. Darwin hadn't told her their names, only that they were looking for answers to put down… well, something ancient and powerful. That just happened to be her expertise. "The ones who need the help of… darker forces." She stepped out of the doorway and nudged for them to enter. "By all means, come right in. I've been expecting you."

Honestly, Winston’s first reaction was whether this was Darwin’s girlfriend, but considering that they were 100% sure that Darwin was gay, they decided that probably wasn’t the case. Honestly, Winston wasn’t sure if they had the energy for this. Once they’d grabbed the books there were still a million other pressing and urgent things to do. Their personal life had become such a mess. “Nice to meet you, sorry that we woke you, but Darwin did say we could grab this stuff and we need it,” after all this was as much for Darwin’s benefit as it was for Winston’s they knew that Darwin was enjoying this less then they were to say the least. Not to mention the blinking eye hanging above them, the eyes that were everywhere and the terrifying cultists that they were also now dealing with. “Rio do you know which books we needed?” Winston honestly wasn’t doing the best with the research at the moment, all the deaths and now everything with the eye had left with them with less time then they’d have liked to look into these things. Fortunately Rio had picked up the slack.

She was expecting them? That wasn’t creepy at all. Orion tried for a smile, hoping that the scepticism and apprehension didn’t leak into his facial expression. Whether or not he trusted her or not, Darwin apparently did. Or at least he did enough to ask her to help them with their research. Did they need the help of darker forces? Rio supposed the time for desperation had long since passed, but he couldn’t help but wonder if there were still other ways. “Uh- Yeah. Generally, I mean. There’s a group of books that he told me about. I know what I’m looking for.” He shrugged. He was convinced that a quick scan of the books would help at least. If he could just match up some of the demonic language he had with one of the books, then that would be a start. “So uh-” Rio realized after stepping into the entryway that she had shared her name with them yet. “You mentioned that you can help us? How exactly is that? You do ritual magic stuff like Darwin does?” He questioned. The blood ritual had given Rio more questions than answers, but it at least proved that there was something more sinister behind a cult and a squid. “Honestly, Winston and I will take whatever help we can get right now.” He wasted no time finding the books that Darwin had packed for him, scrounging through them and rushing through the pages as he waited for the woman’s response.

Tia watched them wander Darwin's store from her place near the door, making sure to lock the useless piece of glass and wood behind them. "By all means, your welcome to whatever you like." She said dully, walking until she came to sit at a nearby armchair. It dwarfed her small, human body, she realized as she got comfortable. That was the worst part of humanity, she believed, how stagnant they remained for years and years. Had she wanted, she would have appeared strong, terrifying. Instead she was left to give off the appearance of vulnerability, and that meant she was forced to compensate. If she could not be a demoness, she could certainly act like one. "Something like that," She lied, checking her nails as she spoke. "I'm an expert in demon languages, demon spellwork, etcetera, etcetera…" Tia forgot how much she enjoyed lying to mortals. Even if it was small, it reminded her of her life before it was destroyed. "You might say I'm a voyeur of sorts."

Winston didn’t miss the door locking behind them. “Thanks, I appreciate the help, we’re trying to fix whatever the hell is wrong with the sun and the only way to do that is to find out what we actually need to do.” The ocean had turned to ink, the sky was home to a giant blinking eye instead of the sun and there were cultists and literal eyeballs everywhere. “Wait?” Winston turned and looked at her interested suddenly, “If you’re an expert on demons and demon spell work and all that fun shit then you could probably help us,” Winston looked around and glanced at the bandage on their hand that was covering the eyelid on their palm. “The whole eye in the sky shit, I’m - I mean - we are pretty sure that it is because this cult is trying to summon a demon army or something into the real world and we might all die because of it at any moment. The cultists that are even more active then before are kind of proof of that and do you think maybe you could look at some stuff and see if it I don’t know - means anything to you?”

Orion lost the conversation pretty quickly after getting consumed by the books. He wasn’t being as thorough as he would have liked to be, but time was running out for him to be picking the texts apart word by word. Maybe after all this was ever, he could. Instead, he grabbed out any books that he thought may be old enough to help them, quite literally judging the books by their covers. He flipped through them, skipping paragraphs and then pages and then simply flipping through entire sections, looking for anything that stood out. “Did you say expert on demon languages?” Rio fell back into the conversation at the sound of that. It was funny how quickly his feelings for the woman changed when he realized that she was an expert in something Rio was passionate about. “Woah.” He definitely had questions for her. An entire notebook of notes to ask her about. “Right here!” Rio yelled out finally, pointing at a page and jumping up, “This word. It’s the same one from the knife. Water. Just like what the cultists were saying.” Rio brought the book over closer to the two and held it out, “All we have going for us right now are fragments of a story or spell or something. Water. A beacon. Joining bodies.” He sighed. They needed to find the thread that tied them all together. “Please.”

Tia blinked at them in surprise, shrinking back into the chair unconsciously for a moment. Usually she reveled in attention, but for some reason, a bout twisted in her stomach that she couldn't describe. Wordlessly, she took the book that the man- Rio she thought his name was- handed to her as he yelled about water and bodies and whatever else the humans had gotten themselves tangled in. When she arrived in town to find all the oddities, she had almost thought it hilarious, at first. Surely it was the work of a demon with a sense of humor. But they were right in their assertion, there was something malevolent about it all. Scouring the page, she read her native language with ease. Oh poor dears, they had been way off. "Not water and bodies- the joining of bodies of water." She said turning the book around to point it out to them. "A lake and the sea, more specifically." The longer she read, the deeper the crease between her brows became. Her gaze shot up to them, curious and what the humans may have called worry. "Where did you learn of this? This is… very ancient and dangerous magics. More ancient than I am, in fact."

“We’ve both kind of been working on this for a long time, there have been weird things going in town since the new year and we’ve been doing as much research as we can,” Winston replied hesitantly, they weren’t sure if they should just be telling everyone they met about this. But if there was someone that could help then they would need their help. There had been so much, so many deaths, so much loss, so much horror and so much terror that Winston was beyond enthusiastic about fixing this. “Wait, wait, you said combining the lake and the sea, that sounds a lot like something else that I’ve found,” Winston looked at the bandage on their hand again. They had been researching for months now and finally this was something that they thought was useful. “Do you happen to know if Darwin has a copy of a Theory of Demonology?” Winston asked curiously, “I’ve been looking for it everywhere, it is referenced everywhere but it seems rare.”

What had she meant... more ancient than herself? Orion knew what it implied and it had certainly piqued his curiosity, but he needed to stay focused. But that didn’t mean he wasn’t going to circle back around to that later. She made him uncomfortable, but maybe it was just because the two didn’t know each other. Maybe Rio could make friends, or allies. “Holy crap.” Rio proclaimed. The woman had fit the pieces together. “The lake and the ocean. I bet it has something to do with the beach, where the chest originally washed up.” But why now? What had started this? And what were the cultists planning to do at the lake and the ocean? What did joining the bodies of water mean? Most importantly, how did they stop it?There were still so many questions. “He has to have a copy right? This weird creepy stuff is like Darwin’s thing. Do you know anything about it?” He directed at the woman.

Tiaret watched the two babble to each other about their discoveries, her fingers dancing over the book. She itched to turn the page and find what else might have been hidden in methe thick, obviously extensive text. Perhaps there was something about curses powerful enough to mortalize a demon and how to break them. That was the point of them, wasn't it? All curses had a loophole to extort, even her own, she was sure. "Yes, beaches are crossroads, are they not? Between one world and another. It would make sense for a ritual to draw power from binding two bodies of water." Tia frowned at the them. "Do I look like Darwin's personal librarian? Look at this place, the book could be anywhere." But, of course, she didn't mention that she has spent a good amount of time snooping through Darwin's things. She turned her gaze back to the book in her lap, finding that reading the demonic language was somewhat comforting. Tiaret sighed and raised a black tipped finger to a bookshelf behind the counter. "He had a few books that sounded interesting over there, though I didn't look at them all."

Winston had stopped listening to Tia and Rio at that point. They were hastily looking through the stack of books and looking for anything that might give them more information. They had to find more information on the joining of these bodies of water. “This all does seem to revolve around the lake and the ocean, it all has been somewhat nautically themed in terms of all of the weird things that have been happening so I guess that would make sense.” Pausing for a moment, Winston bit their finger nail and spotted the title that they were looking for. What a rare stroke of luck. “It doesn’t matter if you’re his personal librarian or not, but I think I’ve found it,” Winston pulled down a large tome and placed it gently on a desk. Flipping it open, they began to do their best to struggle through the demon language that they were well aware that they did not fluently speak. “I think that this should have instructions on a very similar ritual, there was an account of it, something that they did in Eastern Europe in the 12th century,” but unfortunately they only knew that because of a note in a Scribes journal referencing it, they had yet to be fortunate enough to actually discover the book.

Orion’s mind was running a mile a minute. He stood, arms crossed and staring at the ceiling. He had his eyes clamped shut and he tried to think. To pull any information from his mind that may be relevant. That may help make sense of it all. The chest at the beach. The cult at the lake. The eyes. So many eyes. The eyes were the big thing here. The eye in the sun, the lake, washing up on the beach. And of course the creepiest ones of all, the eyes within Winston, Darwin and Rio’s hand that gave them visions of other eye shaped creatures. It made Rio shudder, goosebumps snaking across his skin. He rubbed his hands up his arms over the sleeves of his hoodie to try to get the goosebumps to go away, but it wouldn’t stop his skin from crawling. He glanced over at Winston, they were pulling a large tome free and flipping through it. “There was something about a beacon too. My best guess was some kind of lighthouse. Considering the connection with water.” He ran his hands over the closed scar where the eye had been last week. Would the woman know anything about the eye if he had it right now? Could she do anything to shed some more light on it? “I’m sorry. We didn’t want to disrupt your sleep, but we need answers. I really appreciate your help with this. Can you uh- Take a look at that book maybe? See if you can help Winston find what they’re looking for?”

“Eastern European magic? How fun.” Tiaret said in a dull tone, checking her black-clawed nails with deliberate interest. How worried they both seemed. For as long as she could remember, humans had always been selfish little creatures. Coming to her with their wishes and whims and expecting to give nothing in return. Could they truly blame her for having twisted their desires? When they were so adamant on obtaining them by any means necessary? But the two standing before her didn’t seem like those other humans. Neither did Darwin, now that she thought of it. Their concern didn’t seem mired within themselves. If they were unhappy with White Crest, they could simply leave, instead they were making the decision to stay and fight… whatever it is that plagued the odd town. She eyed them, an eyebrow raised and a curious glint in her dark eyes. “Well, since you asked so politely,” She took the book into her hands and set it across her lap, scanning over it idly. “Yes, it speaks of a ritual. Ancient, of course, but very powerful and very complicated.” A chuckle slipped past her lips. “I think there’s mention of a sacrifice. How lovely, sacrificial magic was always a favorite of mine.” She raised her gaze to look at the both of them. “There’s power in blood, did you know that?” Her eyes floated back to the book, her nail tapping against the spine rhythmically. “There are more instructions needed. An order to things. If that order is not followed, then…,” She frowned. “What is that term you humans use? Oh, right, how could I forget? You’re fucked.”

Pursing their lips, Winston gazed at Tuareg intently as she began explain what she had read. Winston’s demonic languages obviously needed some work because they were pretty sure they had red the symbol for blood as crimson milk which whilst sensical was inaccurate. “So there is a ritual involving blood, which of course makes sense because blood was what started all of this at least to some extent, blood is clearly a powerful tool that can be used to generate more power.” Winston wondered if they could combine it with their current project but they didn’t exactly have the time to be considering these sorts of trivialities. It was clear however that the order to things was not in the passage that she had just read from and Winston was convinced that they would need to do more research here. “Okay, the overall ritual itself requires two rituals to take place, the joining of bodies makes it pretty clear that one will have to happen at the lake and one by the ocean and then at least symbolically they will be joining the bodies, but that’s not anything on the actual ritual.” Winston was sure that they were going to hate this. “Rio, dude, I think we need to use the eye again to work this out. We don’t have enough information on the ritual and I can cast the spell Darwin did, he explained the theory enough, but it means taking another vision. Can you handle it?”

If Orion had any doubts before, the woman had now made it incredibly clear that she was not human. But what did that mean exactly? A vampire maybe? Some type of Fae? He knew stories about other, more ancient supernatural species though Rio didn’t know a lot about them. Sometimes he wished there was some spell to make him absorb all the information at the Scribe headquarters at once. At least then he wouldn’t feel so clueless all the time. “We are way too familiar with blood rituals.” Rio sighed, weighing whether or not he should ask her about her comments. About how she knew all of this information. But now didn’t seem like the right time. “Thank you- Uh, for your help. We need to figure out exactly how to do the ritual or we’re… what she said. Screwed.” Rio knew what was coming next. He hated it. He definitely didn’t think it was a good idea considering the last time. And yet it was Winston asking. And Rio couldn’t say no to them. But that didn’t mean he couldn’t complain about it. “I knew you were going to suggest that.” Rio groaned, crossing his arms as if to feign pouting over it. “Fine. Just know I detest this.” As if there were ever any doubts that Rio wouldn’t do it for Winston. “Do you want to help? You know a lot about this stuff, clearly. You would know what to look for. Or pick up things that we may miss.” He asked the woman, uncertain if she would want to involve herself in the blood ritual of two humans that were practically children still.

“You say it with such disdain. Blood magic is still magic, no?” In her long life, she had witnessed and participated in a myriad of rituals of all kinds. If there was one conclusion to be drawn, it was that humans were willing to go to barbaric and incredible lengths to attain whatever they needed. Often, those who came before her had walked a path of hell and high water to kneel and beg for her help. She thought on that for a moment, seeing flashes of people on their knees in front of her, begging for… Why did that make her heart clench? Her hand splayed over her chest where her heart lay, a small frown marring her features. Tiaret’s eyes narrowed in confusion as she listened to their conversation. What on Earth were they talking about? “...Am I going to regret this?” She asked as she rose from her seat and crossed over to them. “I will warn you, I have a vicious temper for people who attempt to harm me. So if even one of my immaculate blonde hairs are out of place, there will be hell to pay.” She smiled twisting her hands in front of her, palm up, as if to offer them to her. “I’d love to help. Do go on, whatever it is you both are trying to do.”

Shaking their head gently, Winston sighed. “It’s not disdain, we’ve just not exactly had the best experience with it, besides technically this is like fairly simple mental magic, we just use the blood as a spell component of sorts.” Winston didn’t really get the concept that there was magic that was forbidden. All magic was an exchange. Sometimes it took a lot. Necromancy for example, Winston had seen first hand how much that cost. It didn’t mean the magic was evil. Perhaps the motive. That was another matter though. “Well, I don’t think you’ll get any physical pain, but this is kind of disturbing, at least, we found it disturbing. Maybe it won’t be the same for you?” They didn’t wait for the answer, the eye had returned to their hand that morning and Winston hadn’t exactly relished it’s return. They had suffered a vision already and it was as bad as Winston had remembered it, leaving them shaking and sweating. Swallowing away their fear, Winston took a seat on the floor and held the eye out, taking Tia’s hand without pausing they quickly chanted the incantation and watched as the eyelid opened and the hazel eye gazed out of their palm up at them. It blinked once before Winston finished their spell. Immediately they were back there, in that place. Except, it was different this time. Rather then a horde of terrible monsters, Winston spotted something. They didn’t know how they knew, but a figure took the horizon and Winston knew that they were a Hunter, or a Slayer or a Warden. They didn’t know how they knew. They just knew.

“We aren’t dangerous.” Orion assured her, offering a smile as evidence and holding his free hand out towards her, “We are just trying to help the people in this town. I swear.” Too similar to a promise, his sister would say. Orion hadn’t promised, but was a swear close enough if the woman with them had been Fae? Did it matter? Rio hadn’t been lying. He did want to help the people and he wasn’t dangerous. Even if it had been binding, it wasn’t a promise that Rio would break either way. Winston took control of the spell this time, taking Darwin’s place. Rio wasn’t concerned about Winston leading, he had full trust in them. The only fear he had was for their safety, as well as Rio and the woman helping. But soon it didn’t matter, because the spell was done and the visions were there. There was a lot of information to take in. Rio could see the ritual, the parts taking place, step by step. And although nobody spoke, the words hummed inside of Rio’s head, explaining any portions missed. A group of people together. A hunter. A shapeshifter. A human. A demon. And someone to lead the spell. Rio cringed, feeling the pain as a shapeshifter was forced to harm the human, to spill their blood for this spell. All at the hands of a hunter. And then the demon’s blood was mixed in. Rio felt outside of his body, an astral projection floating above the gruesome scene he was forced into watching. All he wanted was for it to stop. But he couldn’t let go. Couldn’t break the spell. They needed to see everything or else it couldn’t be stopped.

Well, she supposed that was noble. To a certain sort. Still, Tiaret didn’t trust humans and she probably never would. She had seen the absolute worst of them and all throughout history they had proven themselves unworthy of her time. But now, she was… reliant on them. And in exchange for that reliance, she would have to offer all that she knew. Had she had her magic, she would have reveled in such a deal. Cautiously, and with all the willpower she could summon, she touched her hand to his. The feeling that coursed through her was in fact, quite disturbing. The images flashed through her mind so fast that she could barely comprehend them. Her very human, very non-magical mind was almost overwhelmed by it. Her fingers clenched around their hands, her muscles clenching so tight she felt as if she couldn’t breathe for a moment. And then, all at once, it was over. She wretched her hands from them, quickly reaching up to wipe away the blood that trickled from her nose. As she did, she noted the uncontrollable shaking of her hands. Still, she wiped it away with the back of her sleeve and looked at them both, her eyes pricking with tears. “The hunter turns its prey into a beast and the beast harms an innocent.” She said in a slightly wavering tone, clenching her arms around herself to stop the shaking. “A master of demons must then take the innocent blood and mix it with that of a dark creature… And then that creature must die.” For some reason, that fact made her… sad. The sinking in her stomach was more powerful than she thought it would be. But she tried her hardest not to let it show on her face, keeping her expression neutral. “Drown. The demon must drown, I mean. Before that, an exorcist must summon the power of both rituals into it so that when it dies, the rest of whatever ridiculously powerful creature you’re trying to eliminate will die as well.” She frowned at them judgmentally. “Do you make it a habit of fighting things above your caliber? This ritual is meant to rid this world of a terribly powerful being.”

As the visions and the spell ended and Winston was once more wrenched back to reality a terror truly set into their bones at that ritual. This was something that they might be a little under equipped for, but fortunately they had friends that they would be able to get to help them. The entire vision seemed to be a ritual and they were clearly instructions about what they could do to fix everything that was going wrong and Winston needed to write them down, they quickly set about typing what Tiaret was saying into their phone, making a digital copy in case something happened. It was too important to lose now. They had their answer and they knew how they were going to make things better. “God, fuck fuck okay,” Winston took several deep breaths and pulled their glasses straight. Running a hand through their hair they tried their best to think. “I didn’t pick a fight with this thing, squirdward just HAD to come and play in White Crest. This is probably why so much terrible shit has been going on but no one ever listens to any of us when we say that something weird is going on.” Swallowing Winston pulled out their inhaler and took a quick puff of it, the ventolin soothing their harried breathing. “Obviously Rio and I aren’t going to do this on our own, by the sound so fit we’re going to have to have multiple rituals, so we’re going to need to get help. Which is fine. We can do that.” Slowly standing, Winston grabbed an energy drink from their bag and swallowed several gulps in an attempt to replace the energy they had lost with caffeine, which was always an empty replacement. “We need to go, but thank you for your help.”

#wickedswriting #para #chatzy para #chatzy #p: tia #p: orion #all in how you look at it

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ohshcscenerios · 5 years ago

Text

Find Me

Chapter Twenty - Choose Your Own Adventure

Previous Poll Result: Swerve into them

Kyoya’s eyes widened in shock when he saw a metallic cylinder reflecting through the darkness of night. He almost forgot to breathe as he watched the barrel rise to take its aim.

“They’re going to shoot!” He exclaimed, unaware that it was his voice that echoed throughout the car. He couldn’t peel his fearful eyes away from the gun, staring right into his own demise.

“Hold on!” Takashi shouted, gripping the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white. He couldn’t wait for his friends to heed his warning and sharply turned into the car beside them. The car swerved out of the way, missing his direct hit.

A gunshot blasted from behind, forcing Kyoya and Tamaki to take cover in the backseat, crouching out of view. Kyoya couldn’t believe they still tried to shoot, even after they missed their clean chance. Shooting blindly was just as deadly though.

“Takashi what are you doing?” Mitsukuni yelled as he slammed into his car door, reaching for the handle above his head.

Takashi didn’t pay his cousin any mind. He snapped their car to the side again, this time effectively forcing the other car to suddenly brake. Tires screeched against the asphalt while Takashi tried to regain control of their car. They swerved between the lanes for a second before straightening out and picking up speed again. He looked in the rear view mirror and sighed in relief, seeing the first car had turned sideways and blocked the road, stopping the second car from following them.

He didn’t slow down, continuing to speed through downtown until he neared a familiar exit. He didn’t want to drive back to the Ootori mansion in case they were monitoring their trail. He decided the best choice at the moment was hiding out until dawn. At least in the daylight they couldn’t hide in the shadows of night. They’d be relatively safe in the morning.

Until then, they’d have to hide.

He spotted a fish shop with a permanently closed sign taped across the front door. He figured it would be their best option for now.

He parked inside a narrow alleyway, turned off the car, and turned around to check on his friends. “Is anyone hurt?” He asked worriedly, looking between Kyoya, Tamaki, and Mitsukuni.

They were terrified but appeared to be unharmed.

“What the hell is going on?” Tamaki asked. His voice sounded distant, still hazed by what happened.

“I don’t know!” Kyoya barked back, patting down his chest before checking his rolled up window for any cracks.

Mitsukuni fell back into his seat and took several deep breaths to calm down his rising anxiety. “They want us dead, we know that at least.”

..............................................................................................................................

Haruhi didn’t know where she was. Nothing seemed familiar. She couldn’t place the smells, the sounds... nothing. They kept her hands bound most of the time except when she was granted her one bathroom break per day.

They didn’t allow her in any rooms with windows. The first few days were torture but now she had grown accustomed to the darkness and it doesn’t terrify her as badly. She couldn’t consider that a good thing though.

The cold concrete floor was the one thing she’d never get used to. Every time she was thrown back into her room the floor stole her precious body heat. Beside the thin blanket and flat pillow they’ve provided on the blow up mattress in the corner she had nothing to keep her warm or comfortable. They refused to turn on the lights so it would be useless to ask for magazines or puzzles to help pass the time.

All she could really do was sleep. Sleep and pray.

Faint voices echoed down the hallway, just loud enough for her to hear two or three men talking in the den. Most nights they filled the basement with harsh hollers and petty arguments during poker. One always cheated and one always tried to force the other to lay down more money.

They were pathetic. All of them. Pathetic, spineless, desperate men who were willing to lock her away for-

For what?

She didn’t know. She tried to listen to their conversations, carefully listening for key words as to why they were keeping her alive. She had briefly heard one mention a Hitachiin son the other day and spent the rest of that day praying for his safety.

She didn’t know their plans, their motives, or their next moves. She was completely left in the dark, both figuratively and literally.

The voices were coming closer.

“He won’t pay that much, you need to lower the price.” One said.

“I’d rather hear that from him, not you. The price stays the same.” A second one argued.

“He’s bought one from the south village for one thousand more than our asking price. If anything we should raise ours.” A third voice suggested.

Haruhi didn’t know what they were talking about but she did know they were walking closer to her door.

“I agree, we should squeeze as much dough we can from the bastard. We all know he can afford it.” The second voice said sarcastically.

The first voice sighed, “We can’t change the asking price if we already told him! Besides, he’s sending one of his men to inspect her in two days. If he likes what he sees then he’ll write the check.”

Haruhi crawled into a corner when she heard them standing right outside their door. Her bound hands made it difficult to keep her balance but she managed to kick herself backwards until her back hit a cold wall. She desperately wanted to escape but she was trapped.

Always trapped.

She wasn’t sure what they were talking about but she didn’t like where their conversation was going. Whatever - or whoever - they planned to sell in two days would be worth a lot of money. That wasn’t a good sign.

A loud jingle of keys sounded while someone unlocked her door. They threw it open letting the hallway light crash into the room, forcing Haruhi to squint. She wasn’t used to light at this point and her eyes nearly burned by the florescent shining in her face.

A tall rugged man stood in the doorway. The light shining on his back shadowed him, making him appear as a dark figure. However she could see the sinister smile creeping across his face.

Two figures stepped from behind him and walked toward her.

“Bring her to the bathroom. We need to start prepping her.”

What should Haruhi do? (Click to Vote)

I have my internet back and I’m ready to rock and roll. This story just keeps getting better - or worse, considering how you choose to see it. I felt it would be worth while to write from Haruhi’s perspective this time.

What do you think will happen next? Choose wisely.

I only got an hour of sleep last night so I don’t know when I’ll update because I’m going to try to nap now. But I’ll try to update again sometime today.

#ouran high school host club #ohshc #choose your own adventure #find me #Kyoya Ootori #haruhi fujioka #tamaki suoh #takashi morinozuka #mitsukuni haninozuka #hikaru hitachiin #kaoru hitachiin #poll #vote

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